6,243 research outputs found
Hydrogen solubility in zirconium intermetallic second phase particles
The enthalpies of solution of H in Zr binary intermetallic compounds formed
with Cu, Cr, Fe, Mo, Ni, Nb, Sn and V were calculated by means of density
functional theory simulations and compared to that of H in {\alpha}-Zr. It is
predicted that all Zr-rich phases (formed with Cu, Fe, Ni and Sn), and those
phases formed with Nb and V, offer lower energy, more stable sites for H than
{\alpha}-Zr. Conversely, Mo and Cr containing phases do not provide
preferential solution sites for H. In all cases the most stable site for H are
those that offer the highest coordination fraction of Zr atoms. Often these are
four Zr tetrahedra but not always. Implications with respect to H-trapping
properties of commonly observed ternary phases such as Zr(Cr,Fe)2, Zr2(Fe,Ni)
and Zr(Nb,Fe)2 are also discussed.Comment: manuscript accepted for publication in Journal of Nuclear Materials
(2013
Estrogen depletion alters mineralization regulation mechanisms in an ovariectomized monkey animal model
Ovariectomized animal models have been extensively used in osteoporosis research due to the resulting loss of bone mass. The purpose of the present study was to test the hypothesis that estrogen depletion alters mineralization regulation mechanisms in an ovariectomized monkey animal model. To achieve this we used Raman microspectroscopy to analyze humeri from monkeys that were either SHAM-operated or ovariectomized (NâŻ=âŻ10 for each group). Measurements were made as a function of tissue age and cortical surface (periosteal, osteonal, endosteal) based on the presence of calcein fluorescent double labels.
In the present work we focused on osteoid seams (defined as a surface with evident calcein labels, 1âŻÎźm distance away from the mineralizing front, and for which the Raman spectra showed the presence of organic matrix but not mineral), as well as the youngest mineralized tissue between the second fluorescent label and the mineralizing front, 1âŻÎźm inwards from the front with the phosphate mineral peak evident in the Raman spectra (TA1). The spectroscopically determined parameters of interest were the relative glycosaminoglycan (GAG) and pyridinoline (Pyd) contents in the osteoid, and the mineral content in TA1.
At all three cortical surfaces, significant correlations were evident in the SHAM-operated animals between osteoid GAG (negative) and Pyd content, and mineral content, unlike the OVX animals.
These results suggest that in addition to the well-established effects on turnover rates and bone mass, estrogen depletion alters the regulation of mineralization by GAGs and Pyd
Rootless cones on Mars indicating the presence of shallow equatorial ground ice in recent times
Lines, Circles, Planes and Spheres
Let be a set of points in , no three collinear and not
all coplanar. If at most are coplanar and is sufficiently large, the
total number of planes determined is at least . For similar conditions and
sufficiently large , (inspired by the work of P. D. T. A. Elliott in
\cite{Ell67}) we also show that the number of spheres determined by points
is at least , and this bound is best
possible under its hypothesis. (By , we are denoting the
maximum number of three-point lines attainable by a configuration of
points, no four collinear, in the plane, i.e., the classic Orchard Problem.)
New lower bounds are also given for both lines and circles.Comment: 37 page
Accommodation of tin in tetragonal ZrO2
Atomic scale computer simulations using density functional theory were used to investigate the behaviour of tin in the tetragonal phase oxide layer on Zr-based alloys. The SnĂZrSnZrĂ defect was shown to be dominant across most oxygen partial pressures, with Snâ˛â˛ZrSnZrâł charge compensated by VââOVOâ˘â˘ occurring at partial pressures below 10â31âatm. Insertion of additional positive charge into the system was shown to significantly increase the critical partial pressure at which Snâ˛â˛ZrSnZrâł is stable. Recently developed low-Sn nuclear fuel cladding alloys have demonstrated an improved corrosion resistance and a delayed transition compared to Sn-containing alloys, such as Zircaloy-4. The interaction between the positive charge and the tin defect is discussed in the context of alloying additions, such as niobium and their influence on corrosion of cladding alloys
The significance of 'the visit' in an English category-B prison: Views from prisoners, prisoners' families and prison staff
A number of claims have been made regarding the importance of prisoners staying in touch with their family through prison visits, firstly from a humanitarian perspective of enabling family members to see each other, but also regarding the impact of maintaining family ties for successful rehabilitation, reintegration into society and reduced re-offending. This growing evidence base has resulted in increased support by the Prison Service for encouraging the family unit to remain intact during a prisonerâs incarceration. Despite its importance however, there has been a distinct lack of research examining the dynamics of families visiting relatives in prison. This paper explores perceptions of the same event â the visit â from the familiesâ, prisonersâ and prison staffs' viewpoints in a category-B local prison in England. Qualitative data was collected with 30 prisonersâ families, 16 prisoners and 14 prison staff, as part of a broader evaluation of the visitorsâ centre. The findings suggest that the three parties frame their perspective of visiting very differently. Prisonersâ families often see visits as an emotional minefield fraught with practical difficulties. Prisoners can view the visit as the highlight of their time in prison and often have many complaints about how visits are handled. Finally, prison staff see visits as potential security breaches and a major organisational operation. The paper addresses the current gap in our understanding of the prison visit and has implications for the Prison Service and wider social policy
Smooth Pursuit Eye Movements Improve Temporal Resolution for Color Perception
Human observers see a single mixed color (yellow) when different colors (red and green) rapidly alternate. Accumulating evidence suggests that the critical temporal frequency beyond which chromatic fusion occurs does not simply reflect the temporal limit of peripheral encoding. However, it remains poorly understood how the central processing controls the fusion frequency. Here we show that the fusion frequency can be elevated by extra-retinal signals during smooth pursuit. This eye movement can keep the image of a moving target in the fovea, but it also introduces a backward retinal sweep of the stationary background pattern. We found that the fusion frequency was higher when retinal color changes were generated by pursuit-induced background motions than when the same retinal color changes were generated by object motions during eye fixation. This temporal improvement cannot be ascribed to a general increase in contrast gain of specific neural mechanisms during pursuit, since the improvement was not observed with a pattern flickering without changing position on the retina or with a pattern moving in the direction opposite to the background motion during pursuit. Our findings indicate that chromatic fusion is controlled by a cortical mechanism that suppresses motion blur. A plausible mechanism is that eye-movement signals change spatiotemporal trajectories along which color signals are integrated so as to reduce chromatic integration at the same locations (i.e., along stationary trajectories) on the retina that normally causes retinal blur during fixation
On two problems in graph Ramsey theory
We study two classical problems in graph Ramsey theory, that of determining
the Ramsey number of bounded-degree graphs and that of estimating the induced
Ramsey number for a graph with a given number of vertices.
The Ramsey number r(H) of a graph H is the least positive integer N such that
every two-coloring of the edges of the complete graph contains a
monochromatic copy of H. A famous result of Chv\'atal, R\"{o}dl, Szemer\'edi
and Trotter states that there exists a constant c(\Delta) such that r(H) \leq
c(\Delta) n for every graph H with n vertices and maximum degree \Delta. The
important open question is to determine the constant c(\Delta). The best
results, both due to Graham, R\"{o}dl and Ruci\'nski, state that there are
constants c and c' such that 2^{c' \Delta} \leq c(\Delta) \leq 2^{c \Delta
\log^2 \Delta}. We improve this upper bound, showing that there is a constant c
for which c(\Delta) \leq 2^{c \Delta \log \Delta}.
The induced Ramsey number r_{ind}(H) of a graph H is the least positive
integer N for which there exists a graph G on N vertices such that every
two-coloring of the edges of G contains an induced monochromatic copy of H.
Erd\H{o}s conjectured the existence of a constant c such that, for any graph H
on n vertices, r_{ind}(H) \leq 2^{c n}. We move a step closer to proving this
conjecture, showing that r_{ind} (H) \leq 2^{c n \log n}. This improves upon an
earlier result of Kohayakawa, Pr\"{o}mel and R\"{o}dl by a factor of \log n in
the exponent.Comment: 18 page
Online Ramsey theory for a triangle on -free graphs
Given a class of graphs and a fixed graph , the online
Ramsey game for on is a game between two players Builder and
Painter as follows: an unbounded set of vertices is given as an initial state,
and on each turn Builder introduces a new edge with the constraint that the
resulting graph must be in , and Painter colors the new edge either
red or blue. Builder wins the game if Painter is forced to make a monochromatic
copy of at some point in the game. Otherwise, Painter can avoid creating a
monochromatic copy of forever, and we say Painter wins the game.
We initiate the study of characterizing the graphs such that for a given
graph , Painter wins the online Ramsey game for on -free graphs. We
characterize all graphs such that Painter wins the online Ramsey game for
on the class of -free graphs, except when is one particular graph.
We also show that Painter wins the online Ramsey game for on the class of
-minor-free graphs, extending a result by Grytczuk, Ha{\l}uszczak, and
Kierstead.Comment: 20 pages, 10 page
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