31 research outputs found
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 , and show that
there are no stable--stationary, or otherwise--solutions for configurations
with a strictly linear barotropic equation of state, , where
is the proper surface energy density and . 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.
Absence of trapped surfaces and singularities in cylindrical collapse
The gravitational collapse of an infinite cylindrical thin shell of generic
matter in an otherwise empty spacetime is considered. We show that geometries
admitting two hypersurface orthogonal Killing vectors cannot contain trapped
surfaces in the vacuum portion of spacetime causally available to geodesic
timelike observers. At asymptotic future null infinity, however, congruences of
outgoing radial null geodesics become marginally trapped, due to convergence
induced by shear caused by the interaction of a transverse wave component with
the geodesics. The matter shell itself is shown to be always free of trapped
surfaces, for this class of geometries. Finally, two simplified matter models
are analytically examined. For one model, the weak energy condition is shown to
be a necessary condition for collapse to halt; for the second case, it is a
sufficient condition for collapse to be able to halt.Comment: 26 pages, revtex4, 1 eps figure; matches version to appear in Phys.
Rev. D (in press
Bulk viscosity driving the acceleration of the Universe
The possibility that the present acceleration of the universe is driven by a
kind of viscous fluid is exploited. At background level this model is similar
to the generalized Chaplygin gas model (GCGM). But, at perturbative level, the
viscous fluid exhibits interesting properties. In particular the oscillations
in the power spectrum that plagues the GCGM are not present. Possible
fundamental descriptions for this viscous dark energy are discussed.Comment: Latex file, 8 pages, 3 eps figure
Modelling Patient Behaviour Using IoT Sensor Data: a Case Study to Evaluate Techniques for Modelling Domestic Behaviour in Recovery from Total Hip Replacement Surgery
The UK health service sees around 160,000 total hip or knee replacements every year and this number is expected to rise with an ageing population. Expectations of surgical outcomes are changing alongside demographic trends, whilst aftercare may be fractured as a result of resource limitations. Conventional assessments of health outcomes must evolve to keep up with these changing trends. Health outcomes may be assessed largely by self-report using Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMs), such as the Oxford Hip or Oxford Knee Score, in the months up to and following surgery. Though widely used, many PROMs have methodological limitations and there is debate about how to interpret results and definitions of clinically meaningful change. With the development of a home-monitoring system, there is opportunity to characterise the relationship between PROMs and behaviour in a natural setting and to develop methods of passive monitoring of outcome and recovery after surgery. In this paper, we discuss the motivation and technology used in long-term continuous observation of movement, sleep and domestic routine for healthcare applications, such as the HEmiSPHERE project for hip and knee replacement patients. In this case study, we evaluate trends evident in data of two patients, collected over a 3-month observation period post-surgery, by comparison with scores from PROMs for sleep and movement quality, and by comparison with a third control home. We find that accelerometer and indoor localisation data correctly highlight long-term trends in sleep and movement quality and can be used to predict sleep and wake times and measure sleep and wake routine variance over time, whilst indoor localisation provides context for the domestic routine and mobility of the patient. Finally, we discuss a visual method of sharing findings with healthcare professionals
Numerical Approaches to Spacetime Singularities
This Living Review updates a previous version which its itself an update of a
review article. Numerical exploration of the properties of singularities could,
in principle, yield detailed understanding of their nature in physically
realistic cases. Examples of numerical investigations into the formation of
naked singularities, critical behavior in collapse, passage through the Cauchy
horizon, chaos of the Mixmaster singularity, and singularities in spatially
inhomogeneous cosmologies are discussed.Comment: 51 pages, 6 figures may be found in online version: Living Rev.
Relativity 2002-1 at www.livingreviews.or
Thermal Dileptons at LHC
We predict dilepton invariant-mass spectra for central 5.5 ATeV Pb-Pb
collisions at LHC. Hadronic emission in the low-mass region is calculated using
in-medium spectral functions of light vector mesons within hadronic many-body
theory. In the intermediate-mass region thermal radiation from the Quark-Gluon
Plasma, evaluated perturbatively with hard-thermal loop corrections, takes
over. An important source over the entire mass range are decays of correlated
open-charm hadrons, rendering the nuclear modification of charm and bottom
spectra a critical ingredient.Comment: 2 pages, 2 figures, contributed to Workshop on Heavy Ion Collisions
at the LHC: Last Call for Predictions, Geneva, Switzerland, 14 May - 8 Jun
2007 v2: acknowledgment include
Living and lost mammals of Rio de Janeiro's largest biological reserve: an updated species list of TinguĂĄ
<div><p>Abstract: The TinguĂĄ Biological Reserve (TBR) is the largest protected area of this category in Rio de Janeiro state. Here, for the first time, we present the historical composition of terrestrial mammals' assemblage of TBR region. An inventory was conducted using transect surveys, nonstandard transects, survey of museum specimens and informal reports. Considering all the data, eighty-five species were recorded, placing TBR as the second one in the number of mammals recorded in "Serra do Mar" ecoregion of Atlantic Forest and in the Rio de Janeiro state. Among the species with historical records are the jaguar (Panthera onca) and the golden-lion-tamarin (Leontopithecus rosalia) while the current presence of the maned wolf (Chrysocyon brachyurus) was recorded for the first time. Priority studies should focus on Chiroptera, Rodentia and Didelphimorphia orders, especially in the most remote areas of the reserve, and long-term surveys of endangered species. Besides hunting, fragmentation of its interior by roads, pipelines and transmission lines and exotic species, TBR is also threatened by the urban growth around it and the pressure to reduce its area and its protection category, demanding greater attention by the high levels of governance of protected areas in Brazil.</p></div