51,062 research outputs found
Basis-conjugating automorphisms of a free group and associated Lie algebras
Let F_n = denote the free group with generators {x_1,...,x_n}.
Nielsen and Magnus described generators for the kernel of the canonical
epimorphism from the automorphism group of F_n to the general linear group over
the integers. In particular among them are the automorphisms chi_{k,i} which
conjugate the generator x_k by the generator x_i leaving the x_j fixed for j
not k. A computation of the cohomology ring as well as the Lie algebra obtained
from the descending central series of the group generated by chi_{k,i} for i<k
is given here. Partial results are obtained for the group generated by all
chi_{k,i}.Comment: This is the version published by Geometry & Topology Monographs on 22
February 200
Why do women deliver where they had not planned to go? A qualitative study from peri-urban Nairobi Kenya.
BACKGROUND: In urban Kenya, couples face a wide variety of choices for delivery options; however, many women end up delivering in different facilities from those they had intended while pregnant. One potential consequence of this is delivering in facilities that do not meet minimum quality standards and lack the capacity to provide treatment for obstetric and neonatal complications.
METHODS: This study investigated why women in peri-urban Nairobi, Kenya deliver in facilities they had not intended to use. We used 60 in-depth audio-recorded interviews in which mothers shared their experiences 2-6 months after delivery. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize socio-demographic characteristics of participants. Qualitative data were analyzed in three steps i) exploration and generation of initial codes; ii) searching for themes by gathering coded data that addressed specific themes; and iii) defining and naming identified themes. Verbatim excerpts from participants were provided to illustrate study findings. The Health Belief Model was used to shed light on individual-level drivers of delivery location choice.
RESULTS: Findings show a confluence of factors that predispose mothers to delivering in unintended facilities. At the individual level, precipitate labor, financial limitations, onset of pain, complications, changes in birth plans, undisclosed birth plans, travel during pregnancy, fear of health facility providers, misconception of onset of labor, wrong estimate of delivery date, and onset of labor at night, contributed to delivery at unplanned locations. On the supply side, the sudden referral to other facilities, poor services, wrong projection of delivery date, and long distance to chosen delivery facility, were factors in changes in delivery location. Lack of transport discouraged delivery at a chosen health facility. Social influences included others\u27 perspectives on delivery location and lack of aides/escorts.
CONCLUSIONS: Results from this study suggest that manifold factors contribute to the occurrence of women delivering in facilities that they had not intended during pregnancy. Future studies should consider whether these changes in delivery location late in pregnancy contribute to late facility arrival and the use of lower quality facilities. Deliberate counseling during antenatal care regarding birth plans is likely to encourage timely arrival at facilities consistent with women\u27s preferences
Diffractive energy spreading and its semiclassical limit
We consider driven systems where the driving induces jumps in energy space:
(1) particles pulsed by a step potential; (2) particles in a box with a moving
wall; (3) particles in a ring driven by an electro-motive-force. In all these
cases the route towards quantum-classical correspondence is highly non-trivial.
Some insight is gained by observing that the dynamics in energy space, where
is the level index, is essentially the same as that of Bloch electrons in a
tight binding model, where is the site index. The mean level spacing is
like a constant electric field and the driving induces long range hopping
1/(n-m).Comment: 19 pages, 11 figs, published version with some improved figure
Improving the Functional Control of Aged Ferroelectrics using Insights from Atomistic Modelling
We provide a fundamental insight into the microscopic mechanisms of the
ageing processes. Using large scale molecular dynamics simulations of the
prototypical ferroelectric material PbTiO3, we demonstrate that the
experimentally observed ageing phenomena can be reproduced from intrinsic
interactions of defect-dipoles related to dopant-vacancy associates, even in
the absence of extrinsic effects. We show that variation of the dopant
concentration modifies the material's hysteretic response. We identify a
universal method to reduce loss and tune the electromechanical properties of
inexpensive ceramics for efficient technologies.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure
The Dynamics of Stellar Coronae Harboring Hot-jupiters II. A Space Weather Event on A Hot-jupiter
We carry out a numerical simulation depicting the effects of a Coronal Mass
Ejection (CME) event on a close-in giant planet in an extrasolar system. We
drive the CME in a similar manner as in simulations of space weather events on
Earth. The simulation includes the planetary orbital motion, which leads to the
forming of a comet-like planetary magnetotail which is oriented almost
perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the CME. The combination of
this feature and the fact that the CME does not expand much by the time it
reaches the planet leads to a unique CME-magnetosphere interaction, where the
CME itself is highly affected by the presence of the planetary magnetosphere.
We find that the planet is well-shielded from CME penetration, even for a
relatively weak internal magnetic field. The planetary angular momentum loss
associated with such an event is negligible compared to the total planetary
angular momentum. We also find that the energy which is deposited in the
magnetosphere is much higher than in the case of the Earth, and our simulation
suggests there is a large-scale change in the orientation of the
magnetosphere-ionosphere current system during the CME event.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures, accepted to Ap
Parametric Evolution for a Deformed Cavity
We consider a classically chaotic system that is described by a Hamiltonian
H(Q,P;x), where (Q,P) describes a particle moving inside a cavity, and x
controls a deformation of the boundary. The quantum-eigenstates of the system
are |n(x)>. We describe how the parametric kernel P(n|m) = , also
known as the local density of states, evolves as a function of x-x0. We
illuminate the non-unitary nature of this parametric evolution, the emergence
of non-perturbative features, the final non-universal saturation, and the
limitations of random-wave considerations. The parametric evolution is
demonstrated numerically for two distinct representative deformation processes.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, improved introduction, to be published in Phys.
Rev.
Temporal Correlations of Local Network Losses
We introduce a continuum model describing data losses in a single node of a
packet-switched network (like the Internet) which preserves the discrete nature
of the data loss process. {\em By construction}, the model has critical
behavior with a sharp transition from exponentially small to finite losses with
increasing data arrival rate. We show that such a model exhibits strong
fluctuations in the loss rate at the critical point and non-Markovian power-law
correlations in time, in spite of the Markovian character of the data arrival
process. The continuum model allows for rather general incoming data packet
distributions and can be naturally generalized to consider the buffer server
idleness statistics
Development of a prototype plastic space erectable satellite Quarterly report, Jun. - Aug. 1966
Copper plated high-density polyethylene film evaluation for space erectable satellite desig
Self-referential cognition and empathy in autism.
BACKGROUND: Individuals with autism spectrum conditions (ASC) have profound impairments in the interpersonal social domain, but it is unclear if individuals with ASC also have impairments in the intrapersonal self-referential domain. We aimed to evaluate across several well validated measures in both domains, whether both self-referential cognition and empathy are impaired in ASC and whether these two domains are related to each other. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Thirty adults aged 19-45, with Asperger Syndrome or high-functioning autism and 30 age, sex, and IQ matched controls participated in the self-reference effect (SRE) paradigm. In the SRE paradigm, participants judged adjectives in relation to the self, a similar close other, a dissimilar non-close other, or for linguistic content. Recognition memory was later tested. After the SRE paradigm, several other complimentary self-referential cognitive measures were taken. Alexithymia and private self-consciousness were measured via self-report. Self-focused attention was measured on the Self-Focus Sentence Completion task. Empathy was measured with 3 self-report instruments and 1 performance measure of mentalizing (Eyes test). Self-reported autistic traits were also measured with the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ). Although individuals with ASC showed a significant SRE in memory, this bias was decreased compared to controls. Individuals with ASC also showed reduced memory for the self and a similar close other and also had concurrent impairments on measures of alexithymia, self-focused attention, and on all 4 empathy measures. Individual differences in self-referential cognition predicted mentalizing ability and self-reported autistic traits. More alexithymia and less self memory was predictive of larger mentalizing impairments and AQ scores regardless of diagnosis. In ASC, more self-focused attention is associated with better mentalizing ability and lower AQ scores, while in controls, more self-focused attention is associated with decreased mentalizing ability and higher AQ scores. Increasing private self-consciousness also predicted better mentalizing ability, but only for individuals with ASC. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: We conclude that individuals with ASC have broad impairments in both self-referential cognition and empathy. These two domains are also intrinsically linked and support predictions made by simulation theory. Our results also highlight a specific dysfunction in ASC within cortical midlines structures of the brain such as the medial prefrontal cortex
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