Nonlinear Model of Blood Flow Through Stenosed Coronary Arteries

Blood flow and pulse wave propagation in the blood vessels are usually studied on the incompressible linearized axsymmetric Navier-Stokes equations (Womersley model) coupled with linear and nonlinear viscoelastic equations for the vessel walls. A brief review of the nonlinear models is given. Blood flow and wave propagation through the stenosed artery terminated by a viscoelastic chamber with different resistivity and compliance has been considered. The material parameters of the wall corresponded to healthy elastic and degenerated compliant human arteries. Both 2d linearized and 1d nonlinear models have been applied for numerical solution of the problem. The computational results for the pressure P(t), flow U(t) and diameter d(t) oscillations have been compared to the measurement data. It is shown that the dynamics of the fluid-filled vessels with healthy elastic walls is satisfactory described by the linearized equations while for the age-related degenerative walls, stenosed or diluted vessels the nonlinear models are preferable

Survey for Transiting Extrasolar Planets in Stellar Systems IV: Variables in the Field of NGC 1245

The Survey for Transiting Extrasolar Planets in Stellar Systems (STEPSS) project is a search for planetary transits in open clusters. In this paper, we analyze the STEPSS observations of the open cluster NGC 1245 to determine the variable star content of the cluster. Out of 6787 stars observed with V < 22, of which ~870 are cluster members, we find 14 stars with clear intrinsic variability that are potential cluster members, and 29 clear variables that are not cluster members. None of these variables have been previously identified. We present light curves, finding charts, and stellar/photometric data on these variable objects. Several of the interacting binaries have estimated distances consistent with the cluster distance determined from isochrone fits to the color magnitude diagram. Four stars at the main sequence turnoff of the cluster have light curves consistent with gamma Doradus variability. If these gamma Doradus candidates are confirmed, they represent the oldest and coolest members of this class of variable discovered to date.Comment: 20 pages, 15 figures. Submitted to AJ. PDF version with full-resolution figures at http://www.astronomy.ohio-state.edu/~pepper/ms.pd

Boomerang effects of gambling warnings exposed to non-problem gamblers

Gambling is the most popular form of entertainment in most markets where it is legal. Theindustry has embraced technology and is a growing category online and through mobileplatforms. Governments throughout the world worry about the product when gambling ismore widely available and more private to play. Warnings for problem gambling have longbeen used in land-based gambling venues but online gambling often does not have thisremedy. In addition, non-problem gamblers make up about 99% of gamblers but littleresearch has tested their reaction to warnings. An online casino was developed to testwarnings and found that a significant proportion of non-problem gamblers gambled morefrequently after exposure to the warnings. Because increased frequency of gambling is one symptom of problem gambling, the implications of these findings are discussed in terms of future remedies for consumers that have problems with gambling products

The subcritical baroclinic instability in local accretion disc models

(abridged) Aims: We present new results exhibiting a subcritical baroclinic instability (SBI) in local shearing box models. We describe the 2D and 3D behaviour of this instability using numerical simulations and we present a simple analytical model describing the underlying physical process. Results: A subcritical baroclinic instability is observed in flows stable for the Solberg-Hoiland criterion using local simulations. This instability is found to be a nonlinear (or subcritical) instability, which cannot be described by ordinary linear approaches. It requires a radial entropy gradient weakly unstable for the Schwartzchild criterion and a strong thermal diffusivity (or equivalently a short cooling time). In compressible simulations, the instability produces density waves which transport angular momentum outward with typically alpha<3e-3, the exact value depending on the background temperature profile. Finally, the instability survives in 3D, vortex cores becoming turbulent due to parametric instabilities. Conclusions: The subcritical baroclinic instability is a robust phenomenon, which can be captured using local simulations. The instability survives in 3D thanks to a balance between the 2D SBI and 3D parametric instabilities. Finally, this instability can lead to a weak outward transport of angular momentum, due to the generation of density waves by the vortices.Comment: 12 pages, 17 figures, Accepted in A&

Catalog of fundamental mode RR Lyrae stars in the Galactic bulge from the Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment

We present a catalog of 1888 fundamental-mode RR Lyrae stars detected in the Galactic bulge fields of the second phase of the Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment (OGLE). The catalog includes basic parameters of the light curves, identifications of Blazhko frequencies, V-I colors at minimum light (for most stars), and other information for each star. We detect a high rate of incidence of the Blazhko phenomenon (at least 27.6%), including unprecedentedly many frequency triplets, which we attribute to our sensitive search method. We find that the minimum light V-I color (useful as a reddening indicator) grows slowly redder with increasing period and exhibits a star-to-star scatter of approximately 0.07 mag. We use this color to evaluate the zero-point accuracy of the reddening map of the Galactic bulge derived from OGLE data, and find that in addition to low-level random errors or resolution effects (responsible for much of the scatter), the map may systematically over-represent E(V-I) by approximately 0.05 mag in most fields. We present reasonably robust evidence that the RR Lyrae-to-red clump color separation is larger by 0.05--0.08 mag in the bulge than locally, which argues for caution in the use of these stars for reddening determinations. We consider the RR Lyrae constraint on the Galactocentric distance, but uncertainty about the absolute magnitude calibration leaves significant flexibility in the result. In contrast to previous results, we robustly detect the signature of the Galactic bar in the RR Lyrae population within the inner plus/minus 3 degrees of longitude, and we highlight the apparent differences between the structures traced by the red clump giants and the more metal-poor RR Lyrae stars. (abridged)Comment: Submitted to ApJ, 34 pages aastex including 8 figures, full tables to appear electronically (temporarily available at http://www.astro.princeton.edu/~collinge/RR/

Clinical trial of lamivudine in children with chronic hepatitis B.

N Engl J Med. 2002 May 30;346(22):1706-13. Clinical trial of lamivudine in children with chronic hepatitis B. Jonas MM, Mizerski J, Badia IB, Areias JA, Schwarz KB, Little NR, Greensmith MJ, Gardner SD, Bell MS, Sokal EM; International Pediatric Lamivudine Investigator Group. of Gastroenterology, Children's Hospital, Boston, MA 02115, USA. Erratum in: N Engl J Med 2002 Sep 19;347(12):955. Kelley, Deirdre [corrected to Kelly, Deirdre]. Comment in: J Hepatol. 2003 May;38(5):698-9. N Engl J Med. 2002 May 30;346(22):1682-3. Abstract BACKGROUND: Lamivudine therapy is effective for chronic hepatitis B infection in adults. We evaluated the efficacy and tolerability of lamivudine as a treatment for chronic infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) in children. METHODS: Children with chronic hepatitis B were randomly assigned in a 2:1 ratio to receive either oral lamivudine (3 mg per kilogram of body weight; maximum, 100 mg) or placebo once daily for 52 weeks. The primary end point was virologic response (defined by the absence of serum hepatitis B e antigen and serum HBV DNA) at week 52 of treatment. RESULTS: Of the 403 children screened, 191 were randomly assigned to receive lamivudine and 97 to receive placebo. The rate of virologic response at week 52 was higher among children who received lamivudine than among those who received placebo (23 percent vs. 13 percent, P=0.04). Lamivudine therapy was well tolerated and was also associated with higher rates of seroconversion from hepatitis B e antigen to hepatitis B e antibody, normalization of alanine aminotransferase levels, and suppression of HBV DNA. CONCLUSIONS: In children with chronic hepatitis B, 52 weeks of treatment with lamivudine was associated with a significantly higher rate of virologic response than was placebo. PMID: 12037150 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE

Automated Nonlinear Stellar Pulsation Calculations: Applications to RR Lyrae stars. The Slope of the Fundamental Blue Edge and the First RRd Model Survey

We describe a methodology that allows us to follow the pulsational behavior of an RR Lyrae model consistently and automatically along its evolutionary track throughout the whole instability strip. It is based on the powerful amplitude equation formalism, and resorts to a judicious combination of numerical hydrodynamical simulations, the analytical signal time-series analysis, and amplitude equations. A large-scale survey of the nonlinear pulsations in RR Lyr instability strip is then presented, and the mode selection mechanism is delineated throughout the relevant regions of parameter space. We obtain and examine two regions with hysteresis, where the pulsational state depends on the direction of the evolutionary tracks, namely a region with either fundamental (RRab) or first overtone (RRc) pulsations and a region with either fundamental (RRab) or double-mode (RRd) pulsations. The regions where stable double-mode (DM, or RRd) pulsations occur are very narrow and hard to find in astrophysical parameter (L, M, T_eff, X, Z) space with hydrodynamic simulations, but our systematic and efficient methodology allows us to investigate them with unprecedented detail. It is shown that by simultaneously considering the effects of mode selection and of horizontal branch evolution we can naturally solve one of the extant puzzles involving the topologies of the theoretical and observed instability strips, namely the slope of the fundamental blue edge. The importance of the interplay between mode selection and stellar evolutionary effects is also demonstrated for the properties of double-mode RR Lyr. Finally, the Petersen diagram of double-mode RR Lyr models is discussed for the first time.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figures, accepted to be published in A&

The Konkoly Blazhko Survey: Is light-curve modulation a common property of RRab stars?

A systematic survey to establish the true incidence rate of the Blazhko modulation among short-period, fundamental-mode, Galactic field RR Lyrae stars has been accomplished. The Konkoly Blazhko Survey (KBS) was initiated in 2004. Since then more than 750 nights of observation have been devoted to this project. A sample of 30 RRab stars was extensively observed, and light-curve modulation was detected in 14 cases. The 47% occurrence rate of the modulation is much larger than any previous estimate. The significant increase of the detected incidence rate is mostly due to the discovery of small-amplitude modulation. Half of the Blazhko variables in our sample show modulation with so small amplitude that definitely have been missed in the previous surveys. We have found that the modulation can be very unstable in some cases, e.g. RY Com showed regular modulation only during one part of the observations while during two seasons it had stable light curve with abrupt, small changes in the pulsation amplitude. This type of light-curve variability is also hard to detect in other Survey's data. The larger frequency of the light-curve modulation of RRab stars makes it even more important to find the still lacking explanation of the Blazhko phenomenon. The validity of the [Fe/H](P,phi_{31}) relation using the mean light curves of Blazhko variables is checked in our sample. We have found that the formula gives accurate result for small-modulation-amplitude Blazhko stars, and this is also the case for large-modulation-amplitude stars if the light curve has complete phase coverage. However, if the data of large-modulation-amplitude Blazhko stars are not extended enough (e.g. < 500 data points from < 15 nights), the formula may give false result due to the distorted shape of the mean light curve used.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS, 14 pages, 7 Figure

Kepler photometry of RRc stars: peculiar double-mode pulsations and period doubling

We present the analysis of four first overtone RR Lyrae stars observed with the Kepler space telescope, based on data obtained over nearly 2.5 yr. All four stars are found to be multiperiodic. The strongest secondary mode with frequency f2 has an amplitude of a few mmag, 20–45 times lower than the main radial mode with frequency f1. The two oscillations have a period ratio of P2/P1 = 0.612–0.632 that cannot be reproduced by any two radial modes. Thus, the secondary mode is non-radial. Modes yielding similar period ratios have also recently been discovered in other variables of the RRc and RRd types. These objects form a homogenous group and constitute a new class of multimode RR Lyrae pulsators, analogous to a similar class of multimode classical Cepheids in the Magellanic Clouds. Because a secondary mode with P2/P1 ∼ 0.61 is found in almost every RRc and RRd star observed from space, this form of multiperiodicity must be common. In all four Kepler RRc stars studied, we find subharmonics of f2 at ∼1/2f2 and at ∼3/2f2. This is a signature of period doubling of the secondary oscillation, and is the first detection of period doubling in RRc stars. The amplitudes and phases of f2 and its subharmonics are variable on a time-scale of 10–200 d. The dominant radial mode also shows variations on the same time-scale, but with much smaller amplitude. In three Kepler RRc stars we detect additional periodicities, with amplitudes below 1 mmag, that must correspond to non-radial g-modes. Such modes never before have been observed in RR Lyrae variables

Pulsational and evolutionary analysis of the double-mode RR Lyrae star BS Com

We derive the basic physical parameters of the field double-mode RR Lyrae star BS Com from its observed periods and the requirement of consistency between the pulsational and evolutionary constraints. By using the current solar-scaled horizontal branch evolutionary models of Pietrinferni et al. (2004) and our linear non-adiabatic purely radiative pulsational models, we get M/M(Sun) = 0.698 +/- 0.004, log(L/L(Sun)) = 1.712 +/- 0.005, T(eff) = 6840 +/- 14 K, [Fe/H] = -1.67 +/- 0.01, where the errors are standard deviations assuming uniform age distribution along the full range of uncertainty in age. The last two parameters are in a good agreement with the ones derived from the observed BVIc colours and the updated ATLAS9 stellar atmosphere models. We get T(eff) = 6842 +/- 10 K, [Fe/H] = -1.58 +/- 0.11, where the errors are purely statistical ones. It is remarkable that the derived parameters are nearly independent of stellar age at early evolutionary stages. Later stages, corresponding to the evolution toward the asymptotic giant branch are most probably excluded because the required high temperatures are less likely to satisfy the constraints posed by the colours. We also show that our conclusions are only weakly sensitive to nonlinear period shifts predicted by current hydrodynamical models.Comment: Accepted for publication by MNRAS on 2008 February 01. The paper contains 4 figures and 8 table