Strong curvature singularities in quasispherical asymptotically de Sitter dust collapse

We study the occurrence, visibility, and curvature strength of singularities in dust-containing Szekeres spacetimes (which possess no Killing vectors) with a positive cosmological constant. We find that such singularities can be locally naked, Tipler strong, and develop from a non-zero-measure set of regular initial data. When examined along timelike geodesics, the singularity's curvature strength is found to be independent of the initial data.Comment: 16 pages, LaTeX, uses IOP package, 2 eps figures; accepted for publication in Class. Quantum Gra

Radion production in exclusive processes at CERN LHC

In the Randall-Sundrum (RS) scenario the compactification radius of the extra dimension is stabilized by the radion, which is a scalar field lighter than the graviton Kaluza-Klein states. It implies that the detection of the radion will be the first signature of the stabilized RS model. In this paper we study the exclusive production of the radion in electromagnetic and diffractive hadron - hadron collisions at the LHC. Our results demonstrate that the diffractive production of radion is dominant and should be feasible of study at CERN LHC.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl

The prevalence of eating disorders not otherwise specified

Objective: Eating Disorders Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS) represent the most common eating disorder diagnosed in specialized treatment settings. The purpose of the current study is to assess the prevalence of EDNOS in a nationwide community sample. Method: Participants were 2028 female students, aged 12 to 23, attending public schools in the 9th to 12th grades in Portugal. Participants completed the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire in Stage 1 of the study. In Stage 2, we selected all the participants who met any of these criteria: (1) BMI ≤ 17.5, (2) scores ≥ 4 on any of the four EDE-Q Subscales, (3) a total EDE-Q score ≥ 4, or, (4) the presence of dysfunctional eating behaviors. In Stage 2, eating disorder experts interviewed 901 participants using the Eating Disorder Examination. Results: The prevalence of all eating disorders was 3.06% among young females. Prevalence for anorexia nervosa was 0.39%, for bulimia nervosa 0.30%, EDNOS 2.37%. Conclusion: EDNOS is a very common eating disorder and accounts for three-quarters of all community cases with eating disordersFundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT

Electronic effects on C-O-C ether bonds in 3-aryloxy derivatives of benzisothiazole 1,1-dioxides: rapid ethanolysis of 3-(4-nitrophenoxy)-1,2-benzisothiazole 1,1-dioxide, (1), to give 3-ethoxy-1,2-benzisothiazole 1,1-dioxide, (2)

The bond lengths in the central C-O-C ether linkage of title compound (1), C13H8N2O5S, are comparable with those found in earlier work on similar compounds. However, (1) was found to undergo very easy solvolysis with ethanol to give (2), C9H9NO3S, for which a structure was also determined, but 3-(4-methoxyphenoxy)-1,2-benzisothiazole 1,1-dioxide, (3), did not hydrolyse under the same conditions. If ground-state structures are important for solvolysis, these results suggest that there should be a difference in the corresponding C-O bond lengths for the ethers (1) and (3). Such differences are not observed. The results can be rationalized by supposing that transition-state energies for ethanolysis are more important factors than those of the ground state.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Expressão de genes de resistência em resposta à infecção por nematóides.

A identificação de genes relacionados com a resistência de plantas a pragas e doenças é de grande importância para o entendimento dos mecanismos de defesa envolvidos durante o ataque de patógenos. Atualmente, vários desses genes, identificados em diferentes espécies vegetais, já foram caracterizados ao nível molecular e suas seqüências estão disponíveis em Bancos de Dados. Atualmente, com a conclusão do sequenciamento do Genoma Café, homólogos de genes de defesa tiveram suas seqüências estabelecidas. No entanto, estudos de genômica funcional são necessários para que o papel destes genes no mecanismo de resistência aos patógenos do café seja conhecido. Este trabalho tem como objetivo inicial caracterizar os mecanismos de defesa em café, através da identificação e avaliação da expressão de genes relacionados com a resistência a nematóides. Foram realizadas buscas de seqüências homólogas a genes de defesa no Banco de Dados do Genoma Café através do programa BLAST e foram identificados genes pertencentes a 12 categorias de genes de defesa. Em experimentos de infecção controlada, raízes de cafeeiros suscetíveis e resistentes foram infectadas pelo nematóide Meloidogyne exigua. Amostras de RNA extraído destas raízes serviram como molde para amplificação de transcritos correspondentes a 6 genes de resistência. Os resultados mostram que os genes avaliados neste estudo apresentam uma expressão basal em raízes infectadas pelo nematóide, sugerindo que a ativação da resposta de defesa é controlada por outras famílias de genes não testadas neste estudo

Desempenho de novilhos em Panicum maximum JACQ. CV. tanzânia sob regime de desfolhação intermitente.

Diante disso, o objetivo desse trabalho foi avaliar o desempenho de novilhos em ?Panicum maximum Jacq. cv. Tanzânia? sob regime de desfolhação intermitente, submetido a duas intensidades de desfolhação

Relativistic shells: Dynamics, horizons, and shell crossing

We consider the dynamics of timelike spherical thin matter shells in vacuum. A general formalism for thin shells matching two arbitrary spherical spacetimes is derived, and subsequently specialized to the vacuum case. We first examine the relative motion of two dust shells by focusing on the dynamics of the exterior shell, whereby the problem is reduced to that of a single shell with different active Schwarzschild masses on each side. We then examine the dynamics of shells with non-vanishing tangential pressure $p$, and show that there are no stable--stationary, or otherwise--solutions for configurations with a strictly linear barotropic equation of state, $p=\alpha\sigma$, where $\sigma$ is the proper surface energy density and $\alpha\in(-1,1)$. For {\em arbitrary} equations of state, we show that, provided the weak energy condition holds, the strong energy condition is necessary and sufficient for stability. We examine in detail the formation of trapped surfaces, and show explicitly that a thin boundary layer causes the apparent horizon to evolve discontinuously. Finally, we derive an analytical (necessary and sufficient) condition for neighboring shells to cross, and compare the discrete shell model with the well-known continuous Lema\^{\i}tre-Tolman-Bondi dust case.Comment: 25 pages, revtex4, 4 eps figs; published in Phys. Rev.

Training deep neural density estimators to identify mechanistic models of neural dynamics

Mechanistic modeling in neuroscience aims to explain observed phenomena in terms of underlying causes. However, determining which model parameters agree with complex and stochastic neural data presents a significant challenge. We address this challenge with a machine learning tool which uses deep neural density estimators-- trained using model simulations-- to carry out Bayesian inference and retrieve the full space of parameters compatible with raw data or selected data features. Our method is scalable in parameters and data features, and can rapidly analyze new data after initial training. We demonstrate the power and flexibility of our approach on receptive fields, ion channels, and Hodgkin-Huxley models. We also characterize the space of circuit configurations giving rise to rhythmic activity in the crustacean stomatogastric ganglion, and use these results to derive hypotheses for underlying compensation mechanisms. Our approach will help close the gap between data-driven and theory-driven models of neural dynamics

Black hole formation from massive scalar fields

It is shown that there exists a range of parameters in which gravitational collapse with a spherically symmetric massive scalar field can be treated as if it were collapsing dust. This implies a criterion for the formation of black holes depending on the size and mass of the initial field configuration and the mass of the scalar field.Comment: 11 pages, RevTeX, 3 eps figures. Submitted to Class. Quantum Gra