PROGRAM ODD--A ONE-DIMENSIONAL MULTIGROUP CODE FOR THE IBM-7090 (ANP PROGRAM NO. 657)

The physical and mathematical reactor models which are used in Program ODD are discussed. In addition, the FORTRAN II source program listings, decimal data input sheets, and input and output for a sample case are given. Program ODD was designed to raake use of the Revised Nuclear Data System at ANPD which consists of twenty-five energy group cross-section data including high energy inelastic scattering matrices, resonance parameters for the resolved resonances, and thermalization scattering matrices for the near thermal energy region. The most unique aspect of the program is the mathematical technique employed for eliminating inner iterations and slow convergenc rates occasioned by the up- scattering'' in the thermalization region of the energy lattice. Direct inversion of the energy matrix coupling the thermal and last four epitherma groups provides simultaneous consistent solutions for thes groups within each power iteration. (auth

Neutron scattering study of the effects of dopant disorder on the superconductivity and magnetic order in stage-4 La_2CuO_{4+y}

We report neutron scattering measurements of the structure and magnetism of stage-4 La_2CuO_{4+y} with T_c ~42 K. Our diffraction results on a single crystal sample demonstrate that the excess oxygen dopants form a three-dimensional ordered superlattice within the interstitial regions of the crystal. The oxygen superlattice becomes disordered above T ~ 330 K, and a fast rate of cooling can freeze-in the disordered-oxygen state. Hence, by controlling the cooling rate, the degree of dopant disorder in our La_2CuO_{4+y} crystal can be varied. We find that a higher degree of quenched disorder reduces T_c by ~ 5 K relative to the ordered-oxygen state. At the same time, the quenched disorder enhances the spin density wave order in a manner analogous to the effects of an applied magnetic field.Comment: 4 figures included in text; submitted to PR

The clustering of ultra-high energy cosmic rays and their sources

The sky distribution of cosmic rays with energies above the 'GZK cutoff' holds important clues to their origin. The AGASA data, although consistent with isotropy, shows evidence for small-angle clustering, and it has been argued that such clusters are aligned with BL Lacertae objects, implicating these as sources. It has also been suggested that clusters can arise if the cosmic rays come from the decays of very massive relic particles in the Galactic halo, due to the expected clumping of cold dark matter. We examine these claims and show that both are in fact not justified.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, version in press at Phys. Rev.

Asymptotic stability of breathers in some Hamiltonian networks of weakly coupled oscillators

We consider a Hamiltonian chain of weakly coupled anharmonic oscillators. It is well known that if the coupling is weak enough then the system admits families of periodic solutions exponentially localized in space (breathers). In this paper we prove asymptotic stability in energy space of such solutions. The proof is based on two steps: first we use canonical perturbation theory to put the system in a suitable normal form in a neighborhood of the breather, second we use dispersion in order to prove asymptotic stability. The main limitation of the result rests in the fact that the nonlinear part of the on site potential is required to have a zero of order 8 at the origin. From a technical point of view the theory differs from that developed for Hamiltonian PDEs due to the fact that the breather is not a relative equilibrium of the system

Classical Stabilization of Homogeneous Extra Dimensions

If spacetime possesses extra dimensions of size and curvature radii much larger than the Planck or string scales, the dynamics of these extra dimensions should be governed by classical general relativity. We argue that in general relativity, it is highly nontrivial to obtain solutions where the extra dimensions are static and are dynamically stable to small perturbations. We also illustrate that intuition on equilibrium and stability built up from non-gravitational physics can be highly misleading. For all static, homogeneous solutions satisfying the null energy condition, we show that the Ricci curvature of space must be nonnegative in all directions. Much of our analysis focuses on a class of spacetime models where space consists of a product of homogeneous and isotropic geometries. A dimensional reduction of these models is performed, and their stability to perturbations that preserve the spatial symmetries is analyzed. We conclude that the only physically realistic examples of classically stabilized large extra dimensions are those in which the extra-dimensional manifold is positively curved.Comment: 25 pages; minor changes, improved reference

Mucin concentrations and peripheral airway obstruction in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Recent studies have revealed that increased airway mucin concentrations in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) slow mucociliary clearance and produce mucus adhesion with mucus plug formation (1). Furthermore, data from SPIROMICS (Subpopulations and Intermediate Outcomes in COPD Study) demonstrated an association between induced sputum (IS) mucin concentrations and measures of airflow obstruction, e.g., FEV1 and FEV1/FVC (2). Peripheral airways are the earliest and dominant sites of airflow obstruction in COPD, and Hogg and colleagues demonstrated that intraluminal mucus plugs contribute a major component to peripheral airway obstruction (3). For development of targeted therapies, it is important to understand whether there are associations between mucus concentrations and peripheral airway obstruction in COPD

Marijuana use associations with pulmonary symptoms and function in Tobacco smokers enrolled in the Subpopulations and Intermediate Outcome Measures in COPD study (SPIROMICS)

Background: Marijuana is often smoked via a filterless cigarette and contains similar chemical makeup as smoked tobacco. There are few publications describing usage patterns and respiratory risks in older adults or in those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods: A cross-sectional analysis of current and former tobacco smokers from the Subpopulations and Intermediate Outcome Measures in COPD Study (SPIROMICS) study assessed associations between marijuana use and pulmonary outcomes. Marijuana use was defined as never, former (use over 30 days ago), or current (use within 30 days). Respiratory health was assessed using quantitative high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) scans, pulmonary function tests and questionnaire responses about respiratory symptoms. Results: Of the total 2304 participants, 1130 (49%) never, 982 (43%) former, and 192 (8%) current marijuana users were included. Neither current nor former marijuana use was associated with increased odds of wheeze (odds ratio [OR] 0.87, OR 0.97), cough (OR 1.22; OR 0.93) or chronic bronchitis (OR 0.87; OR 1.00) when compared to never users. Current and former marijuana users had lower quantitative emphysema (P=0.004, P=0.03), higher percent predicted forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1%) (P < 0.001, P < 0.001), and percent predicted forced vital capacity (FVC%) (p < 0.001, P < 0.001). Current marijuana users exhibited higher total tissue volume (P=0.003) while former users had higher air trapping (P < 0.001) when compared to never marijuana users. Conclusions: Marijuana use was found to have little to no association with poor pulmonary health in older current and former tobacco smokers after adjusting for covariates. Higher forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) and forced vital capacity (FVC) was observed among current marijuana users. However, higher joint years was associated with more chronic bronchitis symptoms (e.g., wheeze), and this study cannot determine if long-term heavy marijuana smoking in the absence of tobacco smoking is associated with lung symptoms, airflow obstruction, or emphysema, particularly in those who have never smoked tobacco cigarettes