1,885 research outputs found
The Effect of Electrode Configuration on the Unipolar His-Bundle Electrogram
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/75654/1/j.1540-8159.1989.tb06148.x.pd
Misinterpreting carbon accumulation rates in records from near-surface peat
Peatlands are globally important stores of carbon (C) that contain a record of how their rates of C accumulation have changed over time. Recently, near-surface peat has been used to assess the effect of current land use practices on C accumulation rates in peatlands. However, the notion that accumulation rates in recently formed peat can be compared to those from older, deeper, peat is mistaken – continued decomposition means that the majority of newly added material will not become part of the long-term C store. Palaeoecologists have known for some time that high apparent C accumulation rates in recently formed peat are an artefact and take steps to account for it. Here we show, using a model, how the artefact arises. We also demonstrate that increased C accumulation rates in near-surface peat cannot be used to infer that a peatland as a whole is accumulating more C – in fact the reverse can be true because deep peat can be modified by events hundreds of years after it was formed. Our findings highlight that care is needed when evaluating recent C addition to peatlands especially because these interpretations could be wrongly used to inform land use policy and decisions
Holographic Metamagnetism, Quantum Criticality, and Crossover Behavior
Using high-precision numerical analysis, we show that 3+1 dimensional gauge
theories holographically dual to 4+1 dimensional Einstein-Maxwell-Chern-Simons
theory undergo a quantum phase transition in the presence of a finite charge
density and magnetic field. The quantum critical theory has dynamical scaling
exponent z=3, and is reached by tuning a relevant operator of scaling dimension
2. For magnetic field B above the critical value B_c, the system behaves as a
Fermi liquid. As the magnetic field approaches B_c from the high field side,
the specific heat coefficient diverges as 1/(B-B_c), and non-Fermi liquid
behavior sets in. For B<B_c the entropy density s becomes non-vanishing at zero
temperature, and scales according to s \sim \sqrt{B_c - B}. At B=B_c, and for
small non-zero temperature T, a new scaling law sets in for which s\sim
T^{1/3}. Throughout a small region surrounding the quantum critical point, the
ratio s/T^{1/3} is given by a universal scaling function which depends only on
the ratio (B-B_c)/T^{2/3}.
The quantum phase transition involves non-analytic behavior of the specific
heat and magnetization but no change of symmetry. Above the critical field, our
numerical results are consistent with those predicted by the Hertz/Millis
theory applied to metamagnetic quantum phase transitions, which also describe
non-analytic changes in magnetization without change of symmetry. Such
transitions have been the subject of much experimental investigation recently,
especially in the compound Sr_3 Ru_2 O_7, and we comment on the connections.Comment: 23 pages, 8 figures v2: added ref
Emergent Quantum Near-Criticality from Baryonic Black Branes
We find new black 3-brane solutions describing the "conifold gauge theory" at
nonzero temperature and baryonic chemical potential. Of particular interest is
the low-temperature limit where we find a new kind of weakly curved
near-horizon geometry; it is a warped product AdS_2 x R^3 x T^{1,1} with warp
factors that are powers of the logarithm of the AdS radius. Thus, our solution
encodes a new type of emergent quantum near-criticality. We carry out some
stability checks for our solutions. We also set up a consistent ansatz for
baryonic black 2-branes of M-theory that are asymptotic to AdS_4 x Q^{1,1,1}.Comment: 29 pages, 4 figures; v2 discussion of entropy revised, minor changes;
v3 note added, minor improvements, version published in JHE
Two years follow-up study of the pain-relieving effect of gold bead implantation in dogs with hip-joint arthritis
Seventy-eight dogs with pain from hip dysplasia participated in a six-month placebo-controlled, double-blinded clinical trial of gold bead implantation. In the present, non-blinded study, 73 of these dogs were followed for an additional 18 months to evaluate the long-term pain-relieving effect of gold bead implantation. The recently-published results of the six month period revealed that 30 of the 36 dogs (83%) in the gold implantation group showed significant improvement (p = 0.02), included improved mobility and reduction in the signs of pain, compared to the placebo group (60% improvement). In the long-term two-year follow-up study, 66 of the 73 dogs had gold implantation and seven dogs continued as a control group. The 32 dogs in the original placebo group had gold beads implanted and were followed for a further 18 months. A certified veterinary acupuncturist used the same procedure to insert the gold beads as in the blinded study, and the owners completed the same type of detailed questionnaires. As in the blinded study, one investigator was responsible for all the assessments of each dog. The present study revealed that the pain-relieving effect of gold bead implantation observed in the blinded study continued throughout the two-year follow-up period
Functional Dichotomy between NKG2D and CD28-Mediated Co-Stimulation in Human CD8+ T Cells
Both CD28 and NKG2D can function as co-stimulatory receptors in human CD8+ T cells. However, their independent functional contributions in distinct CD8+ T cell subsets are not well understood. In this study, CD8+ T cells in human peripheral blood- and lung-derived lymphocytes were analyzed for CD28 and NKG2D expression and function. We found a higher level of CD28 expression in PBMC-derived naïve (CD45RA+CD27+) and memory (CD45RA−CD27+) CD8+ T cells (CD28Hi), while its expression was significantly lower in effector (CD45RA+CD27−) CD8+ T cells (CD28Lo). Irrespective of the differences in the CD28 levels, NKG2D expression was comparable in all three CD8+ T cell subsets. CD28 and NKG2D expressions followed similar patterns in human lung-resident GILGFVFTL/HLA-A2-pentamer positive CD8+ T cells. Co-stimulation of CD28Lo effector T cells via NKG2D significantly increased IFN-γ and TNF-α levels. On the contrary, irrespective of its comparable levels, NKG2D-mediated co-stimulation failed to augment IFN-γ and TNF-α production in CD28Hi naïve/memory T cells. Additionally, CD28-mediated co-stimulation was obligatory for IL-2 generation and thereby its production was limited only to the CD28Hi naïve/memory subsets. MICA, a ligand for NKG2D was abundantly expressed in the tracheal epithelial cells, validating the use of NKG2D as the major co-stimulatory receptor by tissue-resident CD8+ effector T cells. Based on these findings, we conclude that NKG2D may provide an expanded level of co-stimulation to tissue-residing effector CD8+ T cells. Thus, incorporation of co-stimulation via NKG2D in addition to CD28 is essential to activate tumor or tissue-infiltrating effector CD8+ T cells. However, boosting a recall immune response via memory CD8+ T cells or vaccination to stimulate naïve CD8+ T cells would require CD28-mediated co-stimulation
Probe Branes, Time-dependent Couplings and Thermalization in AdS/CFT
We present holographic descriptions of thermalization in conformal field
theories using probe D-branes in AdS X S space-times. We find that the induced
metrics on Dp-brane worldvolumes which are rotating in an internal sphere
direction have horizons with characteristic Hawking temperatures even if there
is no black hole in the bulk AdS. The AdS/CFT correspondence applied to such
systems indeed reveals thermal properties such as Brownian motions and AC
conductivities in the dual conformal field theories. We also use this framework
to holographically analyze time-dependent systems undergoing a quantum quench,
where parameters in quantum field theories, such as a mass or a coupling
constant, are suddenly changed. We confirm that this leads to thermal behavior
by demonstrating the formation of apparent horizons in the induced metric after
a certain time.Comment: LaTeX, 47 pages, 14 figures; Typos corrected and references added
(v2); minor corrections, references added(v3
Gauge gravity duality for d-wave superconductors: prospects and challenges
We write down an action for a charged, massive spin two field in a fixed
Einstein background. Despite some technical problems, we argue that in an
effective field theory framework and in the context of the AdS/CFT
correspondence, this action can be used to study the properties of a superfluid
phase transition with a d-wave order parameter in a dual strongly interacting
field theory. We investigate the phase diagram and the charge conductivity of
the superfluid phase. We also explain how possible couplings between the spin
two field and bulk fermions affect the fermion spectral function.Comment: 42 pages, 6 figure
An exceptionally bright flare from SGR1806-20 and the origins of short-duration gamma-ray bursts
Soft-gamma-ray repeaters (SGRs) are galactic X-ray stars that emit numerous
short-duration (about 0.1 s) bursts of hard X-rays during sporadic active
periods. They are thought to be magnetars: strongly magnetized neutron stars
with emissions powered by the dissipation of magnetic energy. Here we report
the detection of a long (380 s) giant flare from SGR 1806-20, which was much
more luminous than any previous transient event observed in our Galaxy. (In the
first 0.2 s, the flare released as much energy as the Sun radiates in a quarter
of a million years.) Its power can be explained by a catastrophic instability
involving global crust failure and magnetic reconnection on a magnetar, with
possible large-scale untwisting of magnetic field lines outside the star. From
a great distance this event would appear to be a short-duration, hard-spectrum
cosmic gamma-ray burst. At least a significant fraction of the mysterious
short-duration gamma-ray bursts therefore may come from extragalactic
magnetars.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figures. Published in Natur
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