Developing a site-conditions map for seismic hazard Assessment in Portugal

The evaluation of site effects on a broad scale is a critical issue for seismic hazard and risk assessment, land use planning and emergency planning. As characterization of site conditions based on the shear-wave velocity has become increasingly important, several methods have been proposed in the literature to estimate its average over the first thirty meters (Vs30) from more extensively available data. These methods include correlations with geologic-geographic defined units and topographic slope. In this paper we present the first steps towards the development of a site–conditions map for Portugal, based on a regional database of shear-wave velocity data, together with geological, geographic, and lithological information. We computed Vs30 for each database site and classified it according to the corresponding geological-lithological information using maps at the smallest scale available (usually 1:50000). We evaluated the consistency of Vs30 values within generalized-geological classes, and assessed the performance of expedient methodologies proposed in the literature

Probing the two-scale-factor universality hypothesis by exact rotation symmetry-breaking mechanism

We probe the two-scale factor universality hypothesis by evaluating, firstly explicitly and analytically at the one-loop order, the loop quantum corrections to the amplitude ratios for O($N$) $\lambda\phi^{4}$ scalar field theories with rotation symmetry-breaking in three distinct and independent methods in which the rotation symmetry-breaking mechanism is treated exactly. We show that the rotation symmetry-breaking amplitude ratios turn out to be identical in the three methods and equal to their respective rotation symmetry-breaking ones, although the amplitudes themselves, in general, depend on the method employed and on the rotation symmetry-breaking parameter. At the end, we show that all these results can be generalized, through an inductive process based on a general theorem emerging from the exact calculation, to any loop level and physically interpreted based on symmetry ideas.Comment: 17 pages, 3 figure

INSIGHTS OF TAKE-OFF OF GROUND REACTIONS FORCE IN HIGH JUMP

The take-off plays an important role on the high jump (HJ) performance, since it is there where the trajectory of the centre of mass is defined (Tellez, 1993) in order to achieve the maximum possible height and clear the bar (Dapena, 1988). The literature has presented several studies using kinematic parameters, however there are very few studies using dynamic parameters to evaluate the take-off (Coh & Supej, 2008). In contrast to other jumps, the HJ presents an increased complexity due to the curvilinear approach-run pathway, imposing a three-dimensional analysis of the movement. On the other hand, the point where the jumpers perform the take-off differs considerably for different subjects. For those reasons research presented in the literature is fundamentally based in the kinematics of the approach-run and take-off. Although great knowledge was achieved in the kinematic of HJ, very few studies can be found concerning the ground reaction forces (GRF). However the knowledge of the GRF pattern enables a more thorough evaluation of the jumper technique and efficiency. The purposes of this study were (i) to evaluate the HJ take-off technique using force plate data based on the characterization of the GRF pattern and (ii) definition of take-off GRF profiles as function of technical and conditional characteristics of different athletes

Pestalotiopsis spp. associado à palmeira jarina no estado do Pará.

Anais do 36º Congresso Paulista de Fitopatologia, 2013, São Paulo

Gluon saturation and the Froissart bound: a simple approach

At very high energies we expect that the hadronic cross sections satisfy the Froissart bound, which is a well-established property of the strong interactions. In this energy regime we also expect the formation of the Color Glass Condensate, characterized by gluon saturation and a typical momentum scale: the saturation scale $Q_s$. In this paper we show that if a saturation window exists between the nonperturbative and perturbative regimes of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD), the total cross sections satisfy the Froissart bound. Furthermore, we show that our approach allows us to describe the high energy experimental data on $pp/p\bar{p}$ total cross sections.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures. Includes additional figures, discussion and reference

Cosmological constant constraints from observation-derived energy condition bounds and their application to bimetric massive gravity

Among the various possibilities to probe the theory behind the recent accelerated expansion of the universe, the energy conditions (ECs) are of particular interest, since it is possible to confront and constrain the many models, including different theories of gravity, with observational data. In this context, we use the ECs to probe any alternative theory whose extra term acts as a cosmological constant. For this purpose, we apply a model-independent approach to reconstruct the recent expansion of the universe. Using Type Ia supernova, baryon acoustic oscillations and cosmic-chronometer data, we perform a Markov Chain Monte Carlo analysis to put constraints on the effective cosmological constant $\Omega^0_{\rm eff}$. By imposing that the cosmological constant is the only component that possibly violates the ECs, we derive lower and upper bounds for its value. For instance, we obtain that $0.59 < \Omega^0_{\rm eff} < 0.91$ and $0.40 < \Omega^0_{\rm eff} < 0.93$ within, respectively, $1\sigma$ and $3\sigma$ confidence levels. In addition, about 30\% of the posterior distribution is incompatible with a cosmological constant, showing that this method can potentially rule it out as a mechanism for the accelerated expansion. We also study the consequence of these constraints for two particular formulations of the bimetric massive gravity. Namely, we consider the Visser's theory and the Hassan and Roses's massive gravity by choosing a background metric such that both theories mimic General Relativity with a cosmological constant. Using the $\Omega^0_{\rm eff}$ observational bounds along with the upper bounds on the graviton mass we obtain constraints on the parameter spaces of both theories.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures, 1 tabl