Reefing system

A mechanical device for receiving a cable and controlling the motion of the cable is described. The cable moves freely in one direction and movement is resisted in the opposite direction until the forces exerted on the cable exceed a predetermined amount. Exceeding the minimum amount of force permits the cable to move in the opposite direction. Diagrams of the device are included

Late-time vacuum phase transitions: Connecting sub-eV scale physics with cosmological structure formation

We show that a particular class of postrecombination phase transitions in the vacuum can lead to localized overdense regions on relatively small scales, roughly 10^6 to 10^10 M_sun, potentially interesting for the origin of large black hole seeds and for dwarf galaxy evolution. Our study suggests that this mechanism could operate over a range of conditions which are consistent with current cosmological and laboratory bounds. One byproduct of phase transition bubble-wall decay may be extra radiation energy density. This could provide an avenue for constraint, but it could also help reconcile the discordant values of the present Hubble parameter (H_0) and sigma_8 obtained by cosmic microwave background (CMB) fits and direct observational estimates. We also suggest ways in which future probes, including CMB considerations (e.g., early dark energy limits), 21-cm observations, and gravitational radiation limits, could provide more stringent constraints on this mechanism and the sub-eV scale beyond-standard-model physics, perhaps in the neutrino sector, on which it could be based. Late phase transitions associated with sterile neutrino mass and mixing may provide a way to reconcile cosmological limits and laboratory data, should a future disagreement arise.Comment: 17 pages, 18 figures. v2: includes additional references and minor corrections/clarifications. v3: includes additional text, figures, and references (matches published version

Effect of afterbody geometry and sting diameter on the aerodynamic characteristics of slender bodies at mach numbers from 1.57 to 2.86

Afterbody geometry and sting diameter effect on aerodynamics of slender bodies at supersonic spee

Neutrino Flavor Evolution in Neutron Star Mergers

We examine the flavor evolution of neutrinos emitted from the disk-like remnant (hereafter called \lq\lq neutrino disk\rq\rq) of a binary neutron star (BNS) merger. We specifically follow the neutrinos emitted from the center of the disk, along the polar axis perpendicular to the equatorial plane. We carried out two-flavor simulations using a variety of different possible initial neutrino luminosities and energy spectra, and for comparison, three-flavor simulations in specific cases. In all simulations, the normal neutrino mass hierarchy was used. The flavor evolution was found to be highly dependent on the initial neutrino luminosities and energy spectra; in particular, we found two broad classes of results depending on the sign of the initial net electron neutrino lepton number (i.e., the number of neutrinos minus the number of antineutrinos). In the antineutrino dominated case, we found that the Matter-Neutrino Resonance (MNR) effect dominates, consistent with previous results, whereas in the neutrino dominated case, a bipolar spectral swap develops. The neutrino dominated conditions required for this latter result have been realized, e.g, in a BNS merger simulation that employs the \lq\lq DD2\rq\rq\ equation of state for neutron star matter[Phys. Rev. D 93, 044019 (2016)]. For this case, in addition to the swap at low energies, a collective Mikheyev-Smirnov-Wolfenstein (MSW) mechanism generates a high-energy electron neutrino tail. The enhanced population of high-energy electron neutrinos in this scenario could have implications for the prospects of $r$-process nucleosynthesis in the material ejected outside the plane of the neutrino disk.Comment: Version published in Physical Review D. 22 pages, 16 figures, 9 tables. For movies see Ancillary files in version

Understanding the cognitive aspects of human error will increase the usability of user interfaces.

Understanding the cognitive aspects of human error will increase the usability of user interfaces. It is important to study the cognitive aspects of human error because many disasters have been attributed to operator errors. Creating usable interfaces that reduce the likelihood of error will save industries a great deal of money and may even save human lives. A greater understanding of human errors can be obtained by examining the psychological basis of errors, the methods used to study errors, some of the problems associated with studying errors and different types of errors. Next, the current research findings can then be applied to user interfaces to reduce the probability of user errors. Then, a web survey system, phpESP, will be analyzed based on the guidelines for reducing human error in user interfaces. The analysis of the survey system can server as a guide to help designers reduce potential user errors

DExD/H box RNA helicases: multifunctional proteins with important roles in transcriptional regulation

The DExD/H box family of proteins includes a large number of proteins that play important roles in RNA metabolism. Members of this family have been shown to act as RNA helicases or unwindases, using the energy from ATP hydrolysis to unwind RNA structures or dissociate RNA–protein complexes in cellular processes that require modulation of RNA structures. However, it is clear that several members of this family are multifunctional and, in addition to acting as RNA helicases in processes such as pre-mRNA processing, play important roles in transcriptional regulation. In this review I shall concentrate on RNA helicase A (Dhx9), DP103 (Ddx20), p68 (Ddx5) and p72 (Ddx17), proteins for which there is a strong body of evidence showing that they play important roles in transcription, often as coactivators or corepressors through their interaction with key components of the transcriptional machinery, such as CREB-binding protein, p300, RNA polymerase II and histone deacetylases

Business Models and Modelling

International audienceThe business model topic has generated a lot of discussion since the phrase first gained currency in academic articles the late 1990s (Zott, Amit & Massa, 2011). This growing attention culminated in the 2010 Long Range Planning Special Issue that brought the field’s leading scholars together to answer questions about what the business model was and what was its purpose. A key point that emerged was that a business model is more than a statement of how “value is created and captured”; it is a ‘model’ - and, like many other kinds of models - can appear in many guises and serve many purposes. These include being a ‘manipulable device’ that can be used to help academics or managers understand the linkages between value creation and value capture more clearly; as well as being an artefact that can be used to convey knowledge about a business and its status to others (see for instance, Morgan and Morrison, 1999; Teece, 2010, Baden-Fuller & Morgan, 2010)

Comment on "Elasticity Model of a Supercoiled DNA Molecule"

We perform simulations to numerically study the writhe distribution of a stiff polymer. We compare with analytic results of Bouchiat and Mezard (PRL 80 1556- (1998); cond-mat/9706050).Comment: 1 page, 1 figure revtex