1,507 research outputs found
Viscous instabilities in flowing foams: A Cellular Potts Model approach
The Cellular Potts Model (CPM) succesfully simulates drainage and shear in
foams. Here we use the CPM to investigate instabilities due to the flow of a
single large bubble in a dry, monodisperse two-dimensional flowing foam. As in
experiments in a Hele-Shaw cell, above a threshold velocity the large bubble
moves faster than the mean flow. Our simulations reproduce analytical and
experimental predictions for the velocity threshold and the relative velocity
of the large bubble, demonstrating the utility of the CPM in foam rheology
studies.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures. Replaced with revised version accepted for
publication in JSTA
Kaon Photoproduction and the Decay Parameter
The weak decay parameter of the is an important quantity
for the extraction of polarization observables in various experiments.
Moreover, in combination with from decay it provides a
measure for matter-antimatter asymmetry. The weak decay parameter also affects
the decay parameters of the and baryons and, in general, any
quantity in which the polarization of the is relevant. The recently
reported value by the BESIII collaboration of is significantly
larger than the previous PDG value of that had been accepted and
used for over 40 years. In this work we make an independent estimate of
, using an extensive set of polarization data measured in kaon
photoproduction in the baryon resonance region and constraints set by spin
algebra. The obtained value is 0.721(6)(5). The result is corroborated by
multiple statistical tests as well as a modern phenomenological model, showing
that our new value yields the best description of the data in question. Our
analysis supports the new BESIII finding that is significantly
larger than the previous PDG value. Any experimental quantity relying on the
value of should therefore be re-considered.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figure
The bar PANDA focussing-lightguide disc DIRC
bar PANDA will be a fixed target experiment internal to the HESR antiproton storage ring at the future FAIR complex. The ANDA detector requires excellent particle-identification capabilities in order to achieve its scientific potential. Cherenkov counters employing the DIRC principle were chosen as PID detectors for the Target Spectrometer. The proposed Focussing-Lightguide Disc DIRC will cover the forward part of the Target Spectrometer acceptance in the angular range between 5° and 22°. Its design includes a novel approach to mitigate dispersion effects in the solid radiator of a DIRC counter using optical elements. The dispersion correction will enable the Focussing-Lightguide Disc DIRC to provide pion-kaon identification for momenta well above 3.5 GeV/c
Are E-Book Packages Overwhelming and Redefining Your Collection?
Most academic libraries offer numerous e-books alongside their print titles. Traditionally, print materials have been chosen by subject liaisons with input from departmental faculty, whereas e-books have been acquired en masse through large collection purchases, subscriptions, or PDA/DDA programs that include large numbers of discovery records. At Kraemer Family Library, the print budget is divided into subject areas using a formula that includes the number of students in a discipline, level of program (bachelor, master, or doctorate), number of faculty by discipline, and average cost of materials in a subject area. This budget breakdown is an attempt to balance the libraryâs collection so that it reflects the focus and emphasis of the curriculum being taught on campus. Beginning in 2012, the Kraemer Family Library at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs began participating in two PDA/DDA e-book programs. The library also began purchasing e-book packages that were either publisher or subject based. During this same time, the library continued to use a formula to allocate the libraryâs print budget. Because e-books were not purchased according to any allocation, and the library was beginning a process of weeding the print collection, an analysis of the effect of e-books on the overall collection was undertaken. The purpose of this analysis was to determine what metrics should be used to determine the impact of e-books on the overall collection and to analyze that data for overall impact on the collection
Bubble kinetics in a steady-state column of aqueous foam
We measure the liquid content, the bubble speeds, and the distribution of
bubble sizes, in a vertical column of aqueous foam maintained in steady-state
by continuous bubbling of gas into a surfactant solution. Nearly round bubbles
accumulate at the solution/foam interface, and subsequently rise with constant
speed. Upon moving up the column, they become larger due to gas diffusion and
more polyhedral due to drainage. The size distribution is monodisperse near the
bottom and polydisperse near the top, but there is an unexpected range of
intermediate heights where it is bidisperse with small bubbles decorating the
junctions between larger bubbles. We explain the evolution in both bidisperse
and polydisperse regimes, using Laplace pressure differences and taking the
liquid fraction profile as a given.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figure
Dissipative flows of 2D foams
We analyze the flow of a liquid foam between two plates separated by a gap of
the order of the bubble size (2D foam). We concentrate on the salient features
of the flow that are induced by the presence, in an otherwise monodisperse
foam, of a single large bubble whose size is one order of magnitude larger than
the average size. We describe a model suited for numerical simulations of flows
of 2D foams made up of a large number of bubbles. The numerical results are
successfully compared to analytical predictions based on scaling arguments and
on continuum medium approximations. When the foam is pushed inside the cell at
a controlled rate, two basically different regimes occur: a plug flow is
observed at low flux whereas, above a threshold, the large bubble migrates
faster than the mean flow. The detailed characterization of the relative
velocity of the large bubble is the essential aim of the present paper. The
relative velocity values, predicted both from numerical and from analytical
calculations that are discussed here in great detail, are found to be in fair
agreement with experimental results
Temperature effects on metabolic scaling of a keystone freshwater crustacean depend on fish-predation regime.
According to the metabolic theory of ecology, metabolic rate, an important indicator of the pace of life, varies with body mass and temperature due to internal physical constraints. However, various ecological factors may also affect metabolic rate and its scaling with body mass. Although reports of such effects on metabolic scaling usually focus on single factors, the possibility of significant interactive effects between multiple factors requires further study. In this study, we show that the effect of temperature on the ontogenetic scaling of resting metabolic rate of the freshwater amphipod Gammarus minus depends critically on habitat differences in predation regime. Increasing temperature tends to cause decreases in the metabolic scaling exponent (slope) in population samples from springs with fish predators, but increases in population samples from springs without fish. Accordingly, the temperature sensitivity of metabolic rate is not only size-specific, but also its relationship to body size shifts dramatically in response to fish predators. We hypothesize that the dampened effect of temperature on the metabolic rate of large adults in springs with fish, and of small juveniles in springs without fish are adaptive evolutionary responses to differences in the relative mortality risk of adults and juveniles in springs with versus without fish predators. Our results demonstrate a complex interaction among metabolic rate, body size, temperature, and predation regime. The intraspecific scaling of metabolic rate with body size and temperature is not merely the result of physical constraints related to internal body design and biochemical kinetics, but rather is ecologically sensitive and evolutionarily malleable
Did changing primary care delivery models change performance? A population based study using health administrative data
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Primary care reform in Ontario, Canada started with the introduction of new enrollment models, the two largest of which are Family Health Networks (FHNs), a capitation-based model, and Family Health Groups (FHGs), a blended fee-for-service model. The purpose of this study was to evaluate differences in performance between FHNs and FHGs and to compare performance before and after physicians joined these new primary care groups.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This study used Ontario administrative claims data to compare performance measures in FHGs and FHNs. The study population included physicians who belonged to a FHN or FHG for at least two years. Patients were included in the analyses if they enrolled with a physician in the two years after the physician joined a FHN or FHG, and also if they saw the physician in a two year period prior to the physician joining a FHN or FHG. Performance was derived from the administrative data, and included measures of preventive screening for cancer (breast, cervical, colorectal) and chronic disease management (diabetes, heart failure, asthma).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Performance measures did not vary consistently between models. In some cases, performance approached current benchmarks (Pap smears, mammograms). In other cases it was improving in relation to previous measures (colorectal cancer screening). There were no changes in screening for cervical cancer or breast cancer after joining either a FHN or FHG. Colorectal cancer screening increased in both FHNs and FHGs. After enrolling in either a FHG or a FHN, prescribing performance measures for diabetes care improved. However, annual eye examinations decreased for younger people with diabetes after joining a FHG or FHN. There were no changes in performance measures for heart failure management or asthma care after enrolling in either a FHG or FHN.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Some improvements in preventive screening and diabetes management which were seen amongst people after they enrolled may be attributed to incentive payments offered to physicians within FHGs and FHNs. However, these primary care delivery models need to be compared with other delivery models and fee for service practices in order to describe more specifically what aspects of model delivery and incentives affect care.</p
Professionalism, Golf Coaching and a Master of Science Degree: A commentary
As a point of reference I congratulate Simon Jenkins on tackling the issue of professionalism in coaching. As he points out coaching is not a profession, but this does not mean that coaching would not benefit from going through a professionalization process. As things stand I find that the stimulus article unpacks some critically important issues of professionalism, broadly within the context of golf coaching. However, I am not sure enough is made of understanding what professional (golf) coaching actually is nor how the development of a professional golf coach can be facilitated by a Master of Science Degree (M.Sc.). I will focus my commentary on these two issues
Machine Learned Particle Detector Simulations
The use of machine learning algorithms is an attractive way to produce very
fast detector simulations for scattering reactions that can otherwise be
computationally expensive. Here we develop a factorised approach where we deal
with each particle produced in a reaction individually: first determine if it
was detected (acceptance) and second determine its reconstructed variables such
as four momentum (reconstruction). For the acceptance we propose using a
probability classification density ratio technique to determine the probability
the particle was detected as a function of many variables. Neural Network and
Boosted Decision Tree classifiers were tested for this purpose and we found
using a combination of both, through a reweighting stage, provided the most
reliable results. For reconstruction a simple method of synthetic data
generation, based on nearest neighbour or decision trees was developed. Using a
toy parameterised detector we demonstrate that such a method can reliably and
accurately reproduce kinematic distributions from a physics reaction. The
relatively simple algorithms allow for small training overheads whilst
producing reliable results. Possible applications for such fast simulated data
include Toy-MC studies of parameter extraction, preprocessing expensive
simulations or generating templates for background distributions shapes
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