279 research outputs found
Thrombin Flux and Wall Shear Rate Regulate Fibrin Fiber Deposition State during Polymerization under Flow
AbstractThrombin is released as a soluble enzyme from the surface of platelets and tissue-factor-bearing cells to trigger fibrin polymerization during thrombosis under flow conditions. Although isotropic fibrin polymerization under static conditions involves protofibril extension and lateral aggregation leading to a gel, factors regulating fiber growth are poorly quantified under hemodynamic flow due to the difficulty of setting thrombin fluxes. A membrane microfluidic device allowed combined control of both thrombin wall flux (10â13 to 10â11 nmol/ÎŒm2 s) and the wall shear rate (10â100 sâ1) of a flowing fibrinogen solution. At a thrombin flux of 10â12 nmol/ÎŒm2 s, both fibrin deposition and fiber thickness decreased as the wall shear rate increased from 10 to 100 sâ1. Direct measurement and transport-reaction simulations at 12 different thrombin flux-wall shear rate conditions demonstrated that two dimensionless numbers, the Peclet number (Pe) and the Damkohler number (Da), defined a state diagram to predict fibrin morphology. For Da < 10, we only observed thin films at all Pe. For 10 < Da < 900, we observed either mat fibers or gels, depending on the Pe. For Da > 900 and Pe < 100, we observed three-dimensional gels. These results indicate that increases in wall shear rate quench first lateral aggregation and then protofibril extension
New directions in island biogeography
Aim: Much of our current understanding of ecological and evolutionary processes comes from island research. With the increasing availability of data on distributions and phylogenetic relationships and new analytical approaches to understanding the processes that shape species distributions and interactions, a re-evaluation of this ever-interesting topic is timely.
Location: Islands globally.
Methods: We start by arguing that the reasons why island research has achieved so much in the past also apply to the future. We then critically assess the current state of island biogeography, focusing on recent changes in emphasis, including research featured in this special issue of Global Ecology and Biogeography. Finally, we suggest promising themes for the future. We cover both ecological and evolutionary topics, although the greater emphasis on island ecology reflects our own backgrounds and interests.
Results: Much ecological theory has been directly or indirectly influenced by research on island biotas. Currently, island biogeography is renascent, with research focusing on, among other things, patterns and processes underlying species interaction networks, species coexistence and the assembly of island communities through ecological and evolutionary time. Continuing island research should provide additional insight into biological invasions and other impacts of human activities, functional diversity and ecosystem functioning, extinction and diversification, species pools and more. Deeper understanding of the similarities and differences between island and mainland systems will aid transferability of island theory to continental regions.
Main conclusions: As research in biogeography and related fields expands in new directions, islands continue to provide opportunities for developing insights, both as natural laboratories for ecology and evolution and because of the exceptions islands often present to the usual ârulesâ of ecology. New data collection initiatives are needed on islands world-wide and should be directed towards filling gaps in our knowledge of within-island distributions of species, as well as the functional traits and phylogenetic relationships of island species
Towards a Simple Model of Compressible Alfvenic Turbulence
A simple model collisionless, dissipative, compressible MHD (Alfvenic)
turbulence in a magnetized system is investigated. In contrast to more familiar
paradigms of turbulence, dissipation arises from Landau damping, enters via
nonlinearity, and is distributed over all scales. The theory predicts that two
different regimes or phases of turbulence are possible, depending on the ratio
of steepening to damping coefficient (m_1/m_2). For strong damping
(|m_1/m_2|<1), a regime of smooth, hydrodynamic turbulence is predicted. For
|m_1/m_2|>1, steady state turbulence does not exist in the hydrodynamic limit.
Rather, spikey, small scale structure is predicted.Comment: 6 pages, one figure, REVTeX; this version to be published in PRE. For
related papers, see http://sdphpd.ucsd.edu/~medvedev/papers.htm
Multibeam Maser Survey of methanol and excited OH in the Magellanic clouds: new detections and maser abundance estimates
âThe definitive version is available at www.blackwell-synergy.com.â Copyright Blackwell Publishing DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2966.2008.12888.xPeer reviewe
Turnover of passerine birds on islands in the Aegean Sea (Greece)
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73442/1/j.1365-2699.2007.01695.x.pd
The 6-GHz methanol multibeam maser catalogue - I. Galactic Centre region, longitudes 345? to 6?
We have conducted a Galactic plane survey of methanol masers at 6668 MHz using a sevenbeam receiver on the Parkes telescope. Here we present results from the first part, which
provides sensitive unbiased coverage of a large region around the Galactic Centre. Details are
given for 183 methanol maser sites in the longitude range 345⊠through the Galactic Centre to
6âŠ. Within 6⊠of the Galactic Centre, we found 88 maser sites, of which more than half (48)
are new discoveries. The masers are confined to a narrow Galactic latitude range, indicative
of many sources at the Galactic Centre distance and beyond, and confined to a thin disc
population; there is no high-latitude population that might be ascribed to the Galactic bulge.
Within 2⊠of the Galactic Centre the maser velocities all lie between â60 and +77 km sâ1,
a range much smaller than the 540 km sâ1 range observed in CO. Elsewhere, the maser with
highest positive velocity (+107 km sâ1) occurs, surprisingly, near longitude 355⊠and is probably attributable to the Galactic bar. The maser with the most negative velocity (â127 km sâ1)
is near longitude 346âŠ, within the longitudeâvelocity locus of the near side of the â3-kpc armâ.
It has the most extreme velocity of a clear population of masers associated with the near and
far sides of the 3-kpc arm. Closer to the Galactic Centre the maser space density is generally
low, except within 0.25 kpc of the Galactic Centre itself, the âGalactic Centre zoneâ, where
it is 50 times higher, which is hinted at by the longitude distribution, and confirmed by the
unusual velocities.AA and DW-McS acknowledge support from a Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) studentship. LQ acknowledges
support from the EU Framework 6 Marie Curie Early Stage Training programme under contract MEST-CT-2005-19669 âESTRELAâ
Search for the standard model Higgs boson decaying into two photons in pp collisions at sqrt(s)=7 TeV
A search for a Higgs boson decaying into two photons is described. The
analysis is performed using a dataset recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC
from pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV, which corresponds to an
integrated luminosity of 4.8 inverse femtobarns. Limits are set on the cross
section of the standard model Higgs boson decaying to two photons. The expected
exclusion limit at 95% confidence level is between 1.4 and 2.4 times the
standard model cross section in the mass range between 110 and 150 GeV. The
analysis of the data excludes, at 95% confidence level, the standard model
Higgs boson decaying into two photons in the mass range 128 to 132 GeV. The
largest excess of events above the expected standard model background is
observed for a Higgs boson mass hypothesis of 124 GeV with a local significance
of 3.1 sigma. The global significance of observing an excess with a local
significance greater than 3.1 sigma anywhere in the search range 110-150 GeV is
estimated to be 1.8 sigma. More data are required to ascertain the origin of
this excess.Comment: Submitted to Physics Letters
Measurement of isolated photon production in pp and PbPb collisions at sqrt(sNN) = 2.76 TeV
Isolated photon production is measured in proton-proton and lead-lead
collisions at nucleon-nucleon centre-of-mass energies of 2.76 TeV in the
pseudorapidity range |eta|<1.44 and transverse energies ET between 20 and 80
GeV with the CMS detector at the LHC. The measured ET spectra are found to be
in good agreement with next-to-leading-order perturbative QCD predictions. The
ratio of PbPb to pp isolated photon ET-differential yields, scaled by the
number of incoherent nucleon-nucleon collisions, is consistent with unity for
all PbPb reaction centralities.Comment: Submitted to Physics Letters
Using behavior-analytic implicit tests to assess sexual interests among normal and sex-offender populations
The development of implicit tests for measuring biases and behavioral predispositions is a recent development within psychology. While such tests are usually researched within a social-cognitive paradigm, behavioral researchers have also begun to view these tests as potential tests of conditioning histories, including in the sexual domain.
The objective of this paper is to illustrate the utility of a behavioral approach to implicit testing and means by which implicit tests can be built to the standards of behavioral psychologists.
Research findings illustrating the short history of implicit testing within the experimental analysis of behavior are reviewed. Relevant parallel and overlapping research findings from the field of social cognition and on the Implicit Association Test are also outlined.
New preliminary data obtained with both normal and sex offender populations are described in order to illustrate how behavior-analytically conceived implicit tests may have potential as investigative tools for assessing histories of sexual arousal conditioning and derived stimulus associations.
It is concluded that popular implicit tests are likely sensitive to conditioned and derived stimulus associations in the history of the test-taker rather than 'unconscious cognitions', per se
Measurement of the View the tt production cross-section using eÎŒ events with b-tagged jets in pp collisions at âs = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector
This paper describes a measurement of the inclusive top quark pair production cross-section (ÏttÂŻ) with a data sample of 3.2 fbâ1 of protonâproton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of âs = 13 TeV, collected in 2015 by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. This measurement uses events with an opposite-charge electronâmuon pair in the final state. Jets containing b-quarks are tagged using an algorithm based on track impact parameters and reconstructed secondary vertices. The numbers of events with exactly one and exactly two b-tagged jets are counted and used to determine simultaneously ÏttÂŻ and the efficiency to reconstruct and b-tag a jet from a top quark decay, thereby minimising the associated systematic uncertainties. The cross-section is measured to be:
ÏttÂŻ = 818 ± 8 (stat) ± 27 (syst) ± 19 (lumi) ± 12 (beam) pb,
where the four uncertainties arise from data statistics, experimental and theoretical systematic effects, the integrated luminosity and the LHC beam energy, giving a total relative uncertainty of 4.4%. The result is consistent with theoretical QCD calculations at next-to-next-to-leading order. A fiducial measurement corresponding to the experimental acceptance of the leptons is also presented
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