29,883 research outputs found
Biscayne aquifer in Dade and Broward Counties, Florida
The Biscayne Aquifer is the principal source of water for the heavily
populated area in the vicinity of West Palm Beach and Miami. The
publication of this data is timely and will assist in the intelligent development
of the water resources of the area.(PDF has 64 pages
Influence of friction forces on the motion of VTOL aircraft during landing operations on ships at sea
Equations describing the friction forces generated during landing operations on ships at sea were formulated. These forces depend on the platform reaction and the coefficient of friction. The platform reaction depends on the relative sink rate and the shock absorbing capability of the landing gear. The friction coefficient varies with the surface condition of the landing platform and the angle of yaw of the aircraft relative to the landing platform. Landings by VTOL aircraft, equipped with conventional oleopneumatic landing gears are discussed. Simplifications are introduced to reduce the complexity of the mathematical description of the tire and shock strut characteristics. Approximating the actual complicated force deflection characteristic of the tire by linear relationship is adequate. The internal friction forces in the shock strut are included in the landing gear model. A set of relatively simple equations was obtained by including only those tire and shock strut characteristics that contribute significantly to the generation of landing gear forces
A control system formulation of the mechanism that controls the secretions of serum group hormone in humans during sleep
Plasma growth hormone concentrations during sleep were determined experimentally. An elevated level of plasma growth hormone was observed during the initial phase of sleep and remained elevated for approximately 3 hr before returning to the steady-state level. Moreover, subsequent to a prolonged interruption of sleep, of the order of 2-3 hr, an elevated level of plasma growth hormone was again observed during the initial phase of resumed sleep. A control system formulation of the mechanism that controls the secretions of serum growth hormone in humans was used to account for the growth hormone responses observed
The MOSS camera on H-1NF
We have configured the modulated optical solid-state spectrometer, a recently developed high-resolution instrument for plasma Dopplerspectroscopy, as an imaging spectroscopiccamera. The camera features a wide field of view (∼10°), large aperture (40 mm), and high spectral resolution ν/Δν greater than 10 000. The camera installation on the H-1NF Heliac is described, together with the steps in the design process, including field widening. Calibration and characterization of the instrument function is discussed and the instrument performance is illustrated with some sample results of spatially resolved ion temperature measurements in H-1NF
Non-equilibrium fluctuations and mechanochemical couplings of a molecular motor
We investigate theoretically the violations of Einstein and Onsager
relations, and the efficiency for a single processive motor operating far from
equilibrium using an extension of the two-state model introduced by Kafri {\em
et al.} [Biophys. J. {\bf 86}, 3373 (2004)]. With the aid of the Fluctuation
Theorem, we analyze the general features of these violations and this
efficiency and link them to mechanochemical couplings of motors. In particular,
an analysis of the experimental data of kinesin using our framework leads to
interesting predictions that may serve as a guide for future experiments.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, accepted to Phys. Rev. Let
Mechanics and force transmission in soft composites of rods in elastic gels
We report detailed theoretical investigations of the micro-mechanics and bulk
elastic properties of composites consisting of randomly distributed stiff
fibers embedded in an elastic matrix in two and three dimensions. Recent
experiments published in Physical Review Letters [102, 188303 (2009)] have
suggested that the inclusion of stiff microtubules in a softer, nearly
incompressible biopolymer matrix can lead to emergent compressibility. This can
be understood in terms of the enhancement of the compressibility of the
composite relative to its shear compliance as a result of the addition of stiff
rod-like inclusions. We show that the Poisson's ratio of such a composite
evolves with increasing rod density towards a particular value, or {\em fixed
point}, independent of the material properties of the matrix, so long as it has
a finite initial compressibility. This fixed point is in three
dimensions and in two dimensions. Our results suggest an important
role for stiff filaments such as microtubules and stress fibers in cell
mechanics. At the same time, our work has a wider elasticity context, with
potential applications to composite elastic media with a wide separation of
scales in stiffness of its constituents such as carbon nanotube-polymer
composites, which have been shown to have highly tunable mechanics.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figure
On the push&pull protocol for rumour spreading
The asynchronous push&pull protocol, a randomized distributed algorithm for
spreading a rumour in a graph , works as follows. Independent Poisson clocks
of rate 1 are associated with the vertices of . Initially, one vertex of
knows the rumour. Whenever the clock of a vertex rings, it calls a random
neighbour : if knows the rumour and does not, then tells the
rumour (a push operation), and if does not know the rumour and knows
it, tells the rumour (a pull operation). The average spread time of
is the expected time it takes for all vertices to know the rumour, and the
guaranteed spread time of is the smallest time such that with
probability at least , after time all vertices know the rumour. The
synchronous variant of this protocol, in which each clock rings precisely at
times , has been studied extensively. We prove the following results
for any -vertex graph: In either version, the average spread time is at most
linear even if only the pull operation is used, and the guaranteed spread time
is within a logarithmic factor of the average spread time, so it is . In the asynchronous version, both the average and guaranteed spread times
are . We give examples of graphs illustrating that these bounds
are best possible up to constant factors. We also prove theoretical
relationships between the guaranteed spread times in the two versions. Firstly,
in all graphs the guaranteed spread time in the asynchronous version is within
an factor of that in the synchronous version, and this is tight.
Next, we find examples of graphs whose asynchronous spread times are
logarithmic, but the synchronous versions are polynomially large. Finally, we
show for any graph that the ratio of the synchronous spread time to the
asynchronous spread time is .Comment: 25 page
Independent respiratory support system Final report, 2 Sep. 1969 - 31 Mar. 1970
Personal portable oxygen respiratory support equipmen
Endothelium-derived microparticles from chronically thromboembolic pulmonary hypertensive patients facilitate endothelial angiogenesis.
11 p.-4 fig.-1 tab.Background: Increased circulating levels of endoglin+ endothelial microparticles (EMPs) have been identified in several cardiovascular disorders, related to severity. Endoglin is an auxilary receptor for transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) important in the regulation of vascular structure.Results: We quantified the number of microparticles in plasma of six patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) and age- and sex-matched pulmonary embolic (PE) and healthy controls and investigated the role of microparticle endoglin in the regulation of pulmonary endothelial function in vitro. Results show significantly increased levels of endoglin+ EMPs in CTEPH plasma, compared to healthy and disease controls. Co-culture of human pulmonary endothelial cells with CTEPH microparticles increased intracellular levels of endoglin and enhanced
TGF-β-induced angiogenesis and Smad1,5,8 phosphorylation in cells, without affecting BMPRII expression. In an in vitro model, we generated endothelium-derived MPs with enforced membrane localization of endoglin. Co-culture of these MPs with endothelial cells increased cellular endoglin content, improved cell survival and stimulated
angiogenesis in a manner similar to the effects induced by overexpressed protein.Conclusions: Increased generation of endoglin+ EMPs in CTEPH is likely to represent a protective mechanism supporting endothelial cell survival and angiogenesis, set to counteract the effects of vascular occlusion and endothelial damage.This research was supported by a project grant (PG 11/13/28765) from the British Heart Foundation and by grants from Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad of Spain (SAF2013-43421-R to CB)Peer reviewe
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