Monte Carlo simulation of a two-field effective Hamiltonian of complete wetting

Recent work on the complete wetting transition for three dimensional systems with short-ranged forces has emphasized the role played by the coupling of order-parameter fluctuations near the wall and depinning interface. It has been proposed that an effective two-field Hamiltonian, which predicts a renormalisation of the wetting parameter, could explain the controversy between RG analysis of the capillary-wave model and Monte Carlo simulations on the Ising model. In this letter results of extensive Monte Carlo simulations of the two-field model are presented. The results are in agreement with prediction of a renormalized wetting parameter $\omega$.Comment: To appear in Europhysics Letters. Latex file, 6 pages, 2 figure

Education From a Biological Point of View

There appears to be an irresolvable disagreement between “progressives” and “conservatives” regarding the ultimate aims of education. This paper argues that the dispute is irresolvable as it currently stands because the traditional progressive/conservative dichotomies are false and based on distorted half-truths. The current impasse is due to the fact that educationalists and philosophers alike have hitherto misunderstood the fundamental purpose of educational activities. The central claim of this paper is that a biological perspective on education allows one to see past the traditional dichotomies and affords a coherent rationale for a set of curricular priorities by providing the framework necessary to draw principled distinctions between education, training, indoctrination, and enculturation, all without having to draw on contentious politico-ideological commitments

Coupled Fluctuations near Critical Wetting

Recent work on the complete wetting transition has emphasized the role played by the coupling of fluctuations of the order parameter at the wall and at the depinning fluid interface. Extending this approach to the wetting transition itself we predict a novel crossover effect associated with the decoupling of fluctuations as the temperature is lowered towards the transition temperature T_W. Using this we are able to reanalyse recent Monte-Carlo simulation studies and extract a value \omega(T_W)=0.8 at T_W=0.9T_C in very good agreement with long standing theoretical predictions.Comment: 4 pages, LaTex, 1 postscript figur

My father, myself, and my muscles:associations between muscle dysmorphia, narcissism and relationship with father among exercising males

Research has yet to examine the associations between muscle dysmorphia (MD), narcissism and relationship with father in a male population. This study aimed to address this. We hypothesized that a negatively experienced relationship with the father for males will lead to an increase in MD symptoms due to undermined self-esteem that stems from a lack of the father as a positive masculine role model. A total of 503 exercising males (Mage = 28.5, SD = 9.6 years) completed self-report measures of MD, narcissism, and relationship with father. Our hypothesized indirect effect model found a negative indirect effect of relationship with father on MD symptoms via vulnerable narcissism, but not via grandiose narcissism. Analysis of individual path coefficients also revealed that a poor relationship with father impacts the development of vulnerable narcissism, but not grandiose narcissism. These findings alert practitioners to the fact that some individuals' MD symptoms may be an attempt to protect the fragile self-esteem central to vulnerable narcissism. Practitioners should consider exploring individuals' feelings and perceptions about their fathers in the treatment of MD. Moreover, future research should build on these findings and explore the observed associations in a longitudinal design to assess the causal model.publishedVersio

Social Mobility and Philosophy in Schools: essentialism improves educational outcomes for school children

Philosophical Enquiry, informed by excellent research to explore the metaphysical core of essentialism, has enabled educational benefits to secondary school children through improved social mobility and supporting the development intellectually enquiring minds. These impacts can be demonstrated through Dr Mark Cain and Dr Stephen Boulter’s use of Philosophical Enquiry within two secondary schools; leading to positive outcomes for students, supported by testimony of their teachers, and influencing educational practices and learning through the inclusion of philosophical enquiry within the curriculum

Influence of Active Recovery on Cardiovascular Function During Ice Hockey

Background: Ice hockey is a popular sport comprised of high-intensity repeated bouts of activity. Light activity, as opposed to passive rest, has been shown to improve power output in repeated sprinting and could potentially help to offset venous pooling, poor perfusion, and the risk of an ischemic event. The objective of our study was, thus, to examine the efficacy of low-intensity lower body activity following a simulated hockey shift for altering hemodynamic function. Methods: In a cross-over design, 15 healthy hockey players (23 ± 1 years, 54 ± 3 mL/kg/min) performed two simulated hockey shifts. In both conditions, players skated up to 85 % of age-predicted heart rate maximum, followed by either passive recovery or active recovery while hemodynamic measures were tracked for up to 180 s of rest. Results: Light active recovery within the confines of an ice hockey bench, while wearing skates and protective gear, was effective for augmenting cardiac output (an average of 2.5 ± 0.2 L/min, p = 0.03) at 45, 50, and 120 s. These alterations were driven by a sustained elevation in heart rate (12 bpm, p = 0.05) combined with a physiological relevant but non-significant (11.6 mL, p = 0.06) increase in stroke volume. Conclusions: Standing and pacing between shifts offers a realistic in-game solution to help slow the precipitous drop in cardiac output (heart rate and stroke volume) that typically occurs with passive rest. Prolonging the duration of an elevated cardiac output further into recovery may be beneficial for promoting recovery of the working skeletal muscles and also avoiding venous pooling and reduced myocardial perfusion. Key Points: Evidence that light activity in the form of standing/pacing is effective for maintaining cardiac output, and thus venous return Increased cardiac output and venous return may help reduce the chances of poor perfusion (ischemia) and could also promote recovery for performance This is a simple, low-risk, intervention demonstrated for the first time to work within the confines of a player’s bench while wearing hockey gea

Surface induced disorder in body-centered cubic alloys

We present Monte Carlo simulations of surface induced disordering in a model of a binary alloy on a bcc lattice which undergoes a first order bulk transition from the ordered DO3 phase to the disordered A2 phase. The data are analyzed in terms of an effective interface Hamiltonian for a system with several order parameters in the framework of the linear renormalization approach due to Brezin, Halperin and Leibler. We show that the model provides a good description of the system in the vicinity of the interface. In particular, we recover the logarithmic divergence of the thickness of the disordered layer as the bulk transition is approached, we calculate the critical behavior of the maxima of the layer susceptibilities, and demonstrate that it is in reasonable agreement with the simulation data. Directly at the (110) surface, the theory predicts that all order parameters vanish continuously at the surface with a nonuniversal, but common critical exponent. However, we find different exponents for the order parameter of the DO3 phase and the order parameter of the B2 phase. Using the effective interface model, we derive the finite size scaling function for the surface order parameter and show that the theory accounts well for the finite size behavior of the DO3 ordering but not for that of B2 ordering. The situation is even more complicated in the neighborhood of the (100) surface, due to the presence of an ordering field which couples to the B2 order.Comment: To appear in Physical Review