A technique for automatic real time scoring of several simultaneous sleep electroencephalograms

Automatic real-time scoring of simultaneous sleep electroencephalogram

Folded fabric tunes rock deformation and failure mode in the upper crust

The micro-mechanisms of brittle failure affect the bulk mechanical behaviour and permeability of crustal rocks. In low-porosity crystalline rocks, these mechanisms are related to mineralogy and fabric anisotropy, while confining pressure, temperature and strain rates regulate the transition from brittle to ductile behaviour. However, the effects of folded anisotropic fabrics, widespread in orogenic settings, on the mechanical behaviour of crustal rocks are largely unknown. Here we explore the deformation and failure behaviour of a representative folded gneiss, by combining the results of triaxial deformation experiments carried out while monitoring microseismicity with microstructural and damage proxies analyses. We show that folded crystalline rocks in upper crustal conditions exhibit dramatic strength heterogeneity and contrasting failure modes at identical confining pressure and room temperature, depending on the geometrical relationships between stress and two different anisotropies associated to the folded rock fabric. These anisotropies modulate the competition among quartz- and mica-dominated microscopic damage processes, resulting in transitional brittle to semi-brittle modes under P and T much lower than expected. This has significant implications on scales relevant to seismicity, energy resources, engineering applications and geohazards

Vacuum Energy: Myths and Reality

We discuss the main myths related to the vacuum energy and cosmological constant, such as: ``unbearable lightness of space-time''; the dominating contribution of zero point energy of quantum fields to the vacuum energy; non-zero vacuum energy of the false vacuum; dependence of the vacuum energy on the overall shift of energy; the absolute value of energy only has significance for gravity; the vacuum energy depends on the vacuum content; cosmological constant changes after the phase transition; zero-point energy of the vacuum between the plates in Casimir effect must gravitate, that is why the zero-point energy in the vacuum outside the plates must also gravitate; etc. All these and some other conjectures appear to be wrong when one considers the thermodynamics of the ground state of the quantum many-body system, which mimics macroscopic thermodynamics of quantum vacuum. In particular, in spite of the ultraviolet divergence of the zero-point energy, the natural value of the vacuum energy is comparable with the observed dark energy. That is why the vacuum energy is the plausible candidate for the dark energy.Comment: 24 pages, 2 figures, submitted to the special issue of Int. J. Mod. Phys. devoted to dark energy and dark matter, IJMP styl

Some closure operations in Zariski-Riemann spaces of valuation domains: a survey

In this survey we present several results concerning various topologies that were introduced in recent years on spaces of valuation domains

Seedling Uptake and Fate of Soil-applied Capsaicin, a Potential Browse Deterrent

Seedling damage due to browse constitutes a major challenge to afforestation and reforestation efforts in the Central Hardwood Forest region of the USA. Many efforts have been made to deter herbivores, but the costs, implementation methods, and relative ineffectiveness of existing mitigation options often preclude operational implementation. An alternate means of deterring wildlife browse is capsaicin, a hot pepper concentrate, which has been reported to decrease herbivory of tree seedlings and is available in a controlled-release form designed to act systemically following application to the soil and subsequent plant uptake. However, the degree to which seedlings are capable of absorbing capsaicin from the soil solution and the location of absorbed capsaicin within the plant remain largely unexamined. A greenhouse experiment was conducted to determine the potential absorption of soil-applied capsaicin in post-transplant northern red oak (Quercus rubra L.) seedlings in conjunction with a growth chamber study investigating the fate of capsaicin in the soil. In the first experiment, each seedling received the recommended dose of 0.03g of soil-applied capsaicin, was separated into roots, leaves, and stems at three and five weeks after capsaicin application, and was analyzed using QQQ-LC/MS. No capsaicin or capsaicinoids were found in any of the tissues. Capsaicin was quantified in the soil, leachates, and ambient air using QQQ-LC/MS in a related experiment with the same growing conditions and capsaicin application rate. These results reflect observed efficacy of capsaicin in the field, and the implications of this study should be considered when evaluating animal browse mitigation measures