Creep of ice: Further studies

Detailed studies have been done of ice creep as related to the icy satellites, Ganymede and Callisto. Included were: (1) the flow of high-pressure water ices II, III, and V, and (2) frictional sliding of ice I sub h. Work was also begun on the study of the effects of impurities on the flow of ice. Test results are summarized

A Rapid Technique for Counting Cracks in Rocks

Using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and an image analyzer, we have developed a technique for counting and measuring cracks in rocks which is more efficient than traditional techniques in which an operator performs all image analysis functions. The key aspect of the technique is that black-on-white tracings of fresh cracks, which can be made rather rapidly by an operator, are measured and digitized by an image analyzer. The most time-consuming step in the process has now become the generation of SEM micrographs and pertinent chemical (mineralogical) information, not the quantification of crack structure. The technique has been applied to two studies involving nuclear waste isolation in a granitic rock, Climax Stock (Nevada Test Site) quartz monzonite, a Cretaceous age rock which is structurally very inhomogeneous. One study detected a relationship between crack structure and distance from a hammer-drilled borehole; the other study was unable to detect a relationship between crack structure and gamma irradiation treatment in rocks loaded to near failure

Physical Properties of Trans-Neptunian Object (20000) Varuna

We present new time-resolved photometric observations of the bright trans-Neptunian object (20000) Varuna and use them to study the rotation period, shape, and color. In observations from 2001 February and April, we find a best-fit two-peaked lightcurve with period 6.3442 +-0.0002 hr. The peak-to-peak photometric range in the R-band is 0.42 +-0.02 mag. We find no rotational variation in colors over the 0.45 < lambda < 0.85 micron wavelength range. From the short double-peaked period and large amplitude we suggest that Varuna is an elongated, prolate body perhaps close in shape to one of the Jacobi ellipsoids. If so, the ratio of the axes projected into the plane of the sky is 1.5:1 and the density is near 1000 kg m^(-3). (20000) Varuna may be a rotationally distorted rubble pile, with a weak internal constitution due to fracturing by past impacts. The high specific angular momentum implied by our observations and recent detections of binary Trans-Neptunian Objects both point to an early, intense collisional epoch in which large Trans-Neptunian Objects were about 100 times more abundant than now. In order to maintain a cosmochemically plausible rock:ice mass ratio of about 0.5, Varuna must be internally porous.Comment: 26 pages, 6 figures, 5 tables, accepted to A

Parametric flutter studies of an arrow-wing configuration: Some early results

Some early experimental results from a combined experimental and analytical study being conducted at NASA-Langley of the transonic flutter characterisitics of a generic arrow wing configuration are presented. The planned study includes the parametric variation of a variety of structural and geometric characteristics. Presented here are flutter results of the basic arrow wing, for the basic wing with the addition of two simulated lower-surface-mounted engine nacelles, and for the basic wing with the addition of both the fin and the engine nacelles

Synthesis and Cytotoxicity of Cyanoborane Adducts of N 6 -Benzoyladenine and 6-Triphenylphosphonylpurine

N 6 -Benzoyladenine-cyanoborane (2), and 6-triphenylphosphonylpurine-cyanoborane (3) were selected for investigation of cytotoxicity in murine and human tumor cell lines, effects on human HL-60 leukemic metabolism and DNA strand scission to determine the feasibility of these compounds as clinical antineoplastic agents. Compounds 2 and 3 both showed effective cytotoxicity based on ED50 values less than 4 μg/ml for L1210, P388, HL-60, Tmolt3, HUT-78, HeLa-S3 uterine, ileum HCT-8, and liver Hepe-2. Compound 2 had activity against ovary 1-A9, while compound 3 was only active against prostate PL and glioma UM. Neither compound was active against the growth of lung 549, breast MCF-7, osteosarcoma HSO, melanoma SK2, KB nasopharynx, and THP-1 acute monocytic leukemia. In mode of action studies in human leukemia HL-60 cells, both compounds demonstrated inhibition of DNA and protein syntheses after 60 min at 100 μM. These compounds inhibited RNA synthesis to a lesser extent. The utilization of the DNA template was suppressed by the compounds as determined by inhibition of the activities of DNA polymerase α, m-RNA polymerase, r-RNA polymerase and t-RNA polymerase, which would cause adequate inhibition of the synthesis of both DNA and RNA. Both compounds markedly inhibited dihydrofolate reductase activity, especially in compound 2. The compounds appeared to have caused cross-linking of the DNA strands after 24 hr at 100 μM in HL-60 cells, which was consistent with the observed increased in ct-DNA viscosity after 24 hr at 100 μM. The compounds had no inhibitory effects on DNA topoisomerase I and II activities or DNA-protein linked breaks. Neither compound interacted with the DNA molecule itself through alkylation of the nucleotide bases nor caused DNA interculation between base pairs. Overall, these antineoplastic agents caused reduction of DNA and protein replication, which would lead to killing of cancer cells

Construction and Expected Performance of the Hadron Blind Detector for the PHENIX Experiment at RHIC

A new Hadron Blind Detector (HBD) for electron identification in high density hadron environment has been installed in the PHENIX detector at RHIC in the fall of 2006. The HBD will identify low momentum electron-positron pairs to reduce the combinatorial background in the $e^{+}e^{-}$ mass spectrum, mainly in the low-mass region below 1 GeV/c$^{2}$. The HBD is a windowless proximity-focusing Cherenkov detector with a radiator length of 50 cm, a CsI photocathode and three layers of Gas Electron Multipliers (GEM). The HBD uses pure CF$_{4}$ as a radiator and a detector gas. Construction details and the expected performance of the detector are described.Comment: QM2006 proceedings, 4 pages 3 figure

Observation of magnetic circular dichroism in Fe L_{2,3} x-ray-fluorescence spectra

We report experiments demonstrating circular dichroism in the x-ray-fluorescence spectra of magnetic systems, as predicted by a recent theory. The data, on the L_{2,3} edges of ferromagnetic iron, are compared with fully relativistic local spin density functional calculations, and the relationship between the dichroic spectra and the spin-resolved local density of occupied states is discussed

Electrostatics and the Assembly of an RNA Virus

Electrostatic interactions play a central role in the assembly of single-stranded RNA viruses. Under physiological conditions of salinity and acidity, virus capsid assembly requires the presence of genomic material that is oppositely charged to the core proteins. In this paper we apply basic polymer physics and statistical mechanics methods to the self-assembly of a synthetic virus encapsidating generic polyelectrolyte molecules. We find that (i) the mean concentration of the encapsidated polyelectrolyte material depends on the surface charge density, the radius of the capsid, and the linear charge density of the polymer but neither on the salt concentration or the Kuhn length, (ii) the total charge of the capsid interior is equal but opposite to that of the empty capsid, a form of charge reversal. Unlike natural viruses, synthetic viruses are predicted not to be under an osmotic swelling pressure. The design condition that self-assembly only produces filled capsids is shown to coincide with the condition that the capsid surface charge exceeds the desorption threshold of polymer surface adsorption. We compare our results with studies on the self-assembly of both synthetic and natural viruses.Comment: 41 pages, 4 figure