23,748 research outputs found
Wave packet dynamics of potassium dimers attached to helium nanodroplets
The dynamics of vibrational wave packets excited in K dimers attached to
superfluid helium nanodroplets is investigated by means of femtosecond
pump-probe spectroscopy. The employed resonant three-photon-ionization scheme
is studied in a wide wavelength range and different pathways leading to
K-formation are identified. While the wave packet dynamics of the
electronic ground state is not influenced by the helium environment,
perturbations of the electronically excited states are observed. The latter
reveal a strong time dependence on the timescale 3-8 ps which directly reflects
the dynamics of desorption of K off the helium droplets
Stochastic geometry and topology of non-Gaussian fields
Gaussian random fields pervade all areas of science. However, it is often the
departures from Gaussianity that carry the crucial signature of the nonlinear
mechanisms at the heart of diverse phenomena, ranging from structure formation
in condensed matter and cosmology to biomedical imaging. The standard test of
non-Gaussianity is to measure higher order correlation functions. In the
present work, we take a different route. We show how geometric and topological
properties of Gaussian fields, such as the statistics of extrema, are modified
by the presence of a non-Gaussian perturbation. The resulting discrepancies
give an independent way to detect and quantify non-Gaussianities. In our
treatment, we consider both local and nonlocal mechanisms that generate
non-Gaussian fields, both statically and dynamically through nonlinear
diffusion.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure
The effects of room design on computer-supported collaborative learning in a multi-touch classroom.
While research indicates that technology can be useful for supporting learning and collaboration, there is still relatively little uptake or widespread implementation of these technologies in classrooms. In this paper, we explore one aspect of the development of a multi-touch classroom, looking at two different designs of the classroom environment to explore how classroom layout may influence group interaction and learning. Three classes of students working in groups of four were taught in the traditional forward-facing room condition, while three classes worked in a centered room condition. Our results indicate that while the outcomes on tasks were similar across conditions, groups engaged in more talk (but not more off-task talk) in a centered room layout, than in a traditional forward-facing room. These results suggest that the use of technology in the classroom may be influenced by the location of the technology, both in terms of the learning outcomes and the interaction behaviors of students. The findings highlight the importance of considering the learning environment when designing technology to support learning, and ensuring that integration of technology into formal learning environments is done with attention to how the technology may disrupt, or contribute to, the classroom interaction practices
In Parkinson's disease STN stimulation enhances responsiveness of movement initiation speed to high reward value
Objective: The subthalamic nucleus (STN) is part of the motor, associative, and limbic cortico-striatal circuits through which it can influence a range of behaviours, with preclinical and clinical evidence suggesting that the STN is involved in motivational modulation of behaviour. In the present study, we investigated if in Parkinson’s disease (PD) motivational modulation of movement speed is altered by deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the STN (STN-DBS). / Methods: We studied the effect of monetary incentive on speed of movement initiation and execution in a computer-based simple reaction time task in 10 operated patients with Parkinson’s disease using a STN DBS ON/OFF design and also in 11 healthy participants. / Results: Prospect of reward improved speed of movement initiation in PD patients both with STN-DBS ON and OFF. However, only with STN-DBS ON, the patients showed greater speeding of initiation time with higher reward magnitude, suggesting enhanced responsivity to higher reward value. Also, on the rewarded trials, PD patients ON stimulation made more anticipation errors than on unrewarded trials, reflecting a propensity to impulsive responses triggered by prospect of reward by subthalamic stimulation. The motivational modulation of movement speed was preserved and enhanced in PD with STN-DBS. / Conclusion: Motivational modulation of movement speed in PD is maintained with STN-DBS, with STN stimulation having a further energizing effect on movement initiation in response to greater incentive value. Our results suggest that STN plays a role in integrating motivational influences into motor action, which may explain some previous reports of STN-DBS induced impulsivity with increased motivational salience of stimuli
Experimental phase diagram of moving vortices
In the mixed state of type II superconductors, vortices penetrate the sample
and form a correlated system due to the screening of supercurrents around them.
Interestingly, we can study this correlated system as a function of density and
driving force. The density, for instance, is controlled by the magnetic field,
B, whereas a current density j acts as a driving force F=jxB on all vortices.
The free motion of vortices is inhibited by the presence of an underlying
potential, which tends to pin the vortices. Hence, to minimize the pinning
strength we studied a superconducting glass in which the depinning current is
10 to 1000 times smaller than in previous studies, which enables us to map out
the complete phase diagram in this new regime. The diagram is obtained as a
function of B, driving current and temperature and led a remarkable set of new
results, which includes a huge peak effect, an additional reentrant depinning
phase and a driving force induced pinning phase.Comment: 4 page
Evaluation of enzyme immunoassays in the diagnosis of camel (Camelus dromedarius) trypanosomiasis:a preliminary investigation
Three enzyme immunoassays were used for the serodiagnosis of Trypanosoma evansi in camels in the Sudan in order to evaluate their ability to discriminate between infected and non-infected animals. Two assays were used for the detection of trypanosomal antibodies, one using specific anti-camel IgG conjugate and another using a non-specific Protein A conjugate. The third assay detected the presence of trypanosomal antigens using anti-T. evansi antibodies in a double antibody sandwich assay. Inspection of the frequency distribution of assay results suggested that the ELISA for circulating trypanosomal antibodies using specific antisera and the ELISA for circulating antigens can distinguish between non-infected camels and infected camels exhibiting patent infections or not. The ELISA using Protein A conjugate to bind non-specifically to camel immunoglobulin did not appear to discriminate between infected and non-infected animals
Metastable states of a flux line lattice studied by transport and Small Angle Neutron Scattering
Flux Lines Lattice (FLL) states have been studied using transport
measurements and Small Angle Neutron Scattering in low T materials. In
Pb-In, the bulk dislocations in the FLL do not influence the transport
properties. In Fe doped NbSe, transport properties can differ after a
Field Cooling (FC) or a Zero Field Cooling (ZFC) procedure, as previously
reported. The ZFC FLL is found ordered with narrow Bragg Peaks and is linked to
a linear V(I) curve and to a superficial critical current. The FC FLL pattern
exhibits two Bragg peaks and the corresponding V(I) curve shows a S-shape. This
can be explained by the coexistence of two ordered FLL slightly tilted from the
applied field direction by different superficial currents. These currents are
wiped out when the transport current is increased.Comment: accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.
The distribution of extremal points of Gaussian scalar fields
We consider the signed density of the extremal points of (two-dimensional)
scalar fields with a Gaussian distribution. We assign a positive unit charge to
the maxima and minima of the function and a negative one to its saddles. At
first, we compute the average density for a field in half-space with Dirichlet
boundary conditions. Then we calculate the charge-charge correlation function
(without boundary). We apply the general results to random waves and random
surfaces. Furthermore, we find a generating functional for the two-point
function. Its Legendre transform is the integral over the scalar curvature of a
4-dimensional Riemannian manifold.Comment: 22 pages, 8 figures, corrected published versio
Generalized Green'S Equivalences on the Subsemigroups of the Bicyclic Monoid
We study generalized Green's equivalences on all subsemigroups of the bicyclic monoid B and determine the abundant (and adequate) subsemigroups of B. © 2010 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC
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