Unknotting numbers and triple point cancelling numbers of torus-covering knots

It is known that any surface knot can be transformed to an unknotted surface knot or a surface knot which has a diagram with no triple points by a finite number of 1-handle additions. The minimum number of such 1-handles is called the unknotting number or the triple point cancelling number, respectively. In this paper, we give upper bounds and lower bounds of unknotting numbers and triple point cancelling numbers of torus-covering knots, which are surface knots in the form of coverings over the standard torus $T$. Upper bounds are given by using $m$-charts on $T$ presenting torus-covering knots, and lower bounds are given by using quandle colorings and quandle cocycle invariants.Comment: 26 pages, 14 figures, added Corollary 1.7, to appear in J. Knot Theory Ramification

Does the 8−N8-N bonding rule break down in As2_2Se3_3 glass?

The local coordination numbers of As$_2$Se$_3$ glass were determined by a combination of anomalous x-ray scattering experiments, reverse Monte Carlo calculations, and {\it ab initio} molecular dynamics simulations. The well-known `8-$N$ bonding rule' proposed by Mott breaks down around the As atoms, exceeding the rule by 7--26%. An experimental prediction based on mean-field theory agrees with the present experimental and theoretical results. The fourfold coordinated As atoms likely form As-As wrong bond chains rather than ethan-like configurations, which is identified as the origin for the breakdown of the `8-$N$ bonding rule'.Comment: 6 pages, 6figures, 1table, submitted to Europhysics Letter

Microlensing of collimated Gamma-Ray Burst afterglows

We investigate stellar microlensing of the collimated gamma-ray burst afterglows. A spherical afterglow appears on the sky as a superluminally expanding thin ring (``ring-like'' image), which is maximally amplified as it crosses the lens. We find that the image of the collimated afterglow becomes quite uniform (``disk-like'' image) after the jet break time (after the Lorentz factor of the jet drops below the inverse of the jet opening angle). Consequently, the amplification peak in the light curve after the break time is lower and broader. Therefore detailed monitoring of the amplification history will be able to test whether the afterglows are jets or not, i.e., ``disk-like'' or not, if the lensing occurs after the break time. We also show that some proper motion and polarization is expected, peaking around the maximum amplification. The simultaneous detection of the proper motion and the polarization will strengthen that the brightening of the light curve is due to microlensing.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

Clinical neurophysiological assessment of sepsis-associated brain dysfunction: a systematic review.

IntroductionSeveral studies have reported the presence of electroencephalography (EEG) abnormalities or altered evoked potentials (EPs) during sepsis. However, the role of these tests in the diagnosis and prognostic assessment of sepsis-associated encephalopathy remains unclear.MethodsWe performed a systematic search for studies evaluating EEG and/or EPs in adult (¿18 years) patients with sepsis-associated encephalopathy. The following outcomes were extracted: a) incidence of EEG/EP abnormalities; b) diagnosis of sepsis-associated delirium or encephalopathy with EEG/EP; c) outcome.ResultsAmong 1976 citations, 17 articles met the inclusion criteria. The incidence of EEG abnormalities during sepsis ranged from 12% to 100% for background abnormality and 6% to 12% for presence of triphasic waves. Two studies found that epileptiform discharges and electrographic seizures were more common in critically ill patients with than without sepsis. In one study, EEG background abnormalities were related to the presence and the severity of encephalopathy. Background slowing or suppression and the presence of triphasic waves were also associated with higher mortality. A few studies demonstrated that quantitative EEG analysis and EP could show significant differences in patients with sepsis compared to controls but their association with encephalopathy and outcome was not evaluated.ConclusionsAbnormalities in EEG and EPs are present in the majority of septic patients. There is some evidence to support EEG use in the detection and prognostication of sepsis-associated encephalopathy, but further clinical investigation is needed to confirm this suggestion

W49A: A starburst triggered by expanding shells

W49A is a giant molecular cloud which harbors some of the most luminous embedded clusters in the Galaxy. However, the explanation for this starburst-like phenomenon is still under debate. Methods. We investigated large-scale Spitzer mid-infrared images together with a Galatic Ring Survey 13CO J = 1-0 image, complemented with higher resolution (~ 11 arcsec) 13CO J = 2-1 and C18O J = 2-1 images over a ~ 15 x 13 pc^2 field obtained with the IRAM 30m telescope. Two expanding shells have been identified in the mid-infrared images, and confirmed in the position-velocity diagrams made from the 13CO J = 2-1 and C18O J = 2-1 data. The mass of the averaged expanding shell, which has an inner radius of ~ 3.3 pc and a thickness of ~ 0.41 pc, is about 1.9 x 10^4 M*. The total kinetic energy of the expanding shells is estimated to be ~ 10^49 erg which is probably provided by a few massive stars, whose radiation pressure and/or strong stellar winds drive the shells. The expanding shells are likely to have a common origin close to the two ultracompact Hii regions (source O and source N), and their expansion speed is estimated to be ~ 5 km/s, resulting in an age of ~ 3-7 x 10^5 years. In addition, on larger (~ 35 x 50 pc^2) scales, remnants of two gas ejections have been identified in the 13CO J = 1 - 0 data. Both ejections seem to have the same center as the expanding shells with a total energy of a few times 10^50 erg. The main driving mechanism for the gas ejections is unclear, but likely related to the mechanism which triggers the starburst in W49A

The Protostellar Luminosity Function

The protostellar luminosity function (PLF) is the present-day luminosity function of the protostars in a region of star formation. It is determined using the protostellar mass function (PMF) in combination with a stellar evolutionary model that provides the luminosity as a function of instantaneous and final stellar mass. As in McKee & Offner (2010), we consider three main accretion models: the Isothermal Sphere model, the Turbulent Core model, and an approximation of the Competitive Accretion model. We also consider the effect of an accretion rate that tapers off linearly in time and an accelerating star formation rate. For each model, we characterize the luminosity distribution using the mean, median, maximum, ratio of the median to the mean, standard deviation of the logarithm of the luminosity, and the fraction of very low luminosity objects. We compare the models with bolometric luminosities observed in local star forming regions and find that models with an approximately constant accretion time, such as the Turbulent Core and Competitive Accretion models, appear to agree better with observation than those with a constant accretion rate, such as the Isothermal Sphere model. We show that observations of the mean protostellar luminosity in these nearby regions of low-mass star formation suggest a mean star formation time of 0.3$\pm$0.1 Myr. Such a timescale, together with some accretion that occurs non-radiatively and some that occurs in high-accretion, episodic bursts, resolves the classical "luminosity problem" in low-mass star formation, in which observed protostellar luminosities are significantly less than predicted. An accelerating star formation rate is one possible way of reconciling the observed star formation time and mean luminosity.Comment: 22 pages, 9 figures, accepted to Ap

The Rossiter-McLaughlin effect and analytic radial velocity curves for transiting extrasolar planetary systems

A transiting extrasolar planet sequentially blocks off the light coming from the different parts of the disk of the host star in a time dependent manner. Due to the spin of the star, this produces an asymmetric distortion in the line profiles of the stellar spectrum, leading to an apparent anomaly of the radial velocity curves, known as the Rossiter - McLaughlin effect. Here, we derive approximate but accurate analytic formulae for the anomaly of radial velocity curves taking account of the stellar limb darkening. The formulae are particularly useful in extracting information of the projected angle between the planetary orbit axis and the stellar spin axis, \lambda, and the projected stellar spin velocity, V sin I_s. We create mock samples for the radial curves for the transiting extrasolar system HD209458, and demonstrate that constraints on the spin parameters (V sin I_s, \lambda) may be significantly improved by combining our analytic template formulae and the precision velocity curves from high-resolution spectroscopic observations with 8-10 m class telescopes. Thus future observational exploration of transiting systems using the Rossiter - McLaughlin effect is one of the most important probes to better understanding of the origin of extrasolar planetary systems, especially the origin of their angular momentum.Comment: 39 pages, 16 figures, Accepted to ApJ. To match the published version (ApJ 623, April 10 issue

The massive protostar W43-MM1 as seen by Herschel-HIFI water spectra: high turbulence and accretion luminosity

We present Herschel/HIFI observations of fourteen water lines in W43-MM1, a massive protostellar object in the luminous star cluster-forming region W43. We analyze the gas dynamics from the line profiles using Herschel-HIFI observations (WISH-KP) of fourteen far-IR water lines (H2O, H217O, H218O), CS(11-10), and C18O(9-8) lines, and using our modeling of the continuum spectral energy distribution. As for lower mass protostellar objects, the molecular line profiles are a mix of emission and absorption, and can be decomposed into 'medium', and 'broad' velocity components. The broad component is the outflow associated with protostars of all masses. Our modeling shows that the remainder of the water profiles can be well fitted by an infalling and passively heated envelope, with highly supersonic turbulence varying from 2.2 km/s in the inner region to 3.5 km/s in the outer envelope. Also, W43-MM1 has a high accretion rate, between 4.0 x 10^{-4} and 4.0 x 10^{-2} \msun /yr, derived from the fast (0.4-2.9 km/s) infall observed. We estimate a lower mass limit of gaseous water of 0.11 \msun and total water luminosity of 1.5 \lsun (in the 14 lines presented here). The central hot core is detected with a water abundance of 1.4 x 10^{-4} while the water abundance for the outer envelope is 8 x10^{-8}. The latter value is higher than in other sources, most likely related to the high turbulence and the micro-shocks created by its dissipation. Examining water lines of various energies, we find that the turbulent velocity increases with the distance to the center. While not in clear disagreement with the competitive accretion scenario, this behavior is predicted by the turbulent core model. Moreover, the estimated accretion rate is high enough to overcome the expected radiation pressure.Comment: Accepted in A&A on April 2, 2012. 12 pages 7 figure

SIMULTANEOUS EXTRACTION AND RAPID HPLC BASED QUANTIFICATION OF CROCIN AND SAFRANAL IN SAFFRON (CROCUS SATIVUS L.)

Objective: Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) is one of the most valuable crops with high medicinal values used in many diseases. The aim of the study was to establish the reliability and rapid HPLC method for analysis of crocin and safranal concentration present in stigmata of saffron in the market as well as field grown samples.Methods: Field grown and market stigmata of saffron were used for extraction of crocin and safranal. The linear dynamic ranges were established after validating the robustness of critical method parameters. The Agilent1260-Infinity Quaternary LC system was used for the preparation of calibration standards and quantification of crocin and safranal in C. sativus stigmata.Results: A good linearity was achieved in the range of 10-30 µg for each compound with the determination coefficient (R2). The calibration curves revealed linear regression (r. 0.997) for this rapid HPLC method and limit of quantifications (LOQs) were achieved in the range of 3.4 µg/ml for crocin and 10.2 µg/ml for safranal. The limit of detection (LODs) for all standards was ≤4.2 µg/ml. The range of crocin content (10.43-16.32 mg/g) and safranal (5.19-5.21 mg/g) was estimated in saffron samples.Conclusion: This method may serve the purpose of accurate quantification of crocin and safranal present in the stigmata of the plant in a quick time period.Keywords: Saffron, Crocin, Safranal, Extraction, Quantification, HPL

The Rotating Molecular Structures and the Ionized Outflow Associated with IRAS 16547-4247

We present VLA 1.3 cm radio continuum and water maser observations as well as SMA SO$_2$ (226.300 GHz) and 1.3 mm dust continuum observations toward the massive star formation region IRAS 16547-4247. We find evidence of multiple sources in the central part of the region. There is evidence of a rotating structure associated with the most massive of these sources, traced at small scales (~50 AU) by the water masers. At large scales (~1000 AU) we find a velocity gradient in the SO2 molecular emission with a barely resolved structure that can be modeled as a rotating ring or two separate objects. The velocity gradients of the masers and of the molecular emission have the same sense and may trace the same structure at different size scales. The position angles of the structures associated with the velocity gradients are roughly perpendicular to the outflow axis observed in radio continuum and several molecular tracers. We estimate the mass of the most massive central source to be around 30 solar masses from the velocity gradient in the water maser emission. The main source of error in this estimate is the radius of the rotating structure. We also find water masers that are associated with the large scale molecular outflow of the system, as well as water masers that are associated with other sources in the region. Our results suggest that the formation of this source, one of the most luminous protostars or protostellar clusters known, is taking place with the presence of ionized jets and disk-like structures.Comment: 26 pages, 7 figure