1,016 research outputs found
Edge effect causes apparent fractal correlation dimension of uniform spatial raindrop distribution
Lovejoy and Schertzer (1990a) presented a statistical analysis of blotting paper observations of the (twodimensional)
spatial distribution of raindrop stains. They
found empirical evidence for the fractal scaling behavior of raindrops in space, with potentially far-reaching implications
for rainfall microphysics and radar meteorology. In particular, the fractal correlation dimensions determined from their
blotting paper observations led them to conclude that âdrops are (hierarchically) clusteredâ and that âinhomogeneity in
rain is likely to extend down to millimeter scalesâ. Confirming previously reported Monte Carlo simulations, we demonstrate
analytically that the claims based on this analysis need to be reconsidered, as fractal correlation dimensions similar to the ones reported (i.e. smaller than the value of two expected for uniformly distributed raindrops) can result from instrumental artifacts (edge effects) in otherwise homogeneous Poissonian rainfall. Hence, the results of the blotting paper experiment are not statistically significant enough to
reject the Poisson homogeneity hypothesis in favor of a fractal description of the discrete nature of rainfall. Our analysis
is based on an analytical expression for the expected overlap area between a circle and a square, when the circle center is randomly (uniformly) distributed inside the square. The derived expression ( r2â8r3/3+r4/2, where r denotes the ratio between the circle radius and the side of the square) can
be used as a reference curve against which to test the statistical significance of fractal correlation dimensions determined
from spatial point patterns, such as those of raindrops and rainfall cells.Postprint (published version
Two-Sided Derivatives for Regular Expressions and for Hairpin Expressions
The aim of this paper is to design the polynomial construction of a finite
recognizer for hairpin completions of regular languages. This is achieved by
considering completions as new expression operators and by applying derivation
techniques to the associated extended expressions called hairpin expressions.
More precisely, we extend partial derivation of regular expressions to
two-sided partial derivation of hairpin expressions and we show how to deduce a
recognizer for a hairpin expression from its two-sided derived term automaton,
providing an alternative proof of the fact that hairpin completions of regular
languages are linear context-free.Comment: 28 page
A Dust-Penetrated Classification Scheme for Bars as Inferred from their Gravitational Force Fields
The division of galaxies into ``barred'' (SB) and ``normal'' (S) spirals is a
fundamental aspect of the Hubble galaxy classification system. This ``tuning
fork'' view was revised by de Vaucouleurs, whose classification volume
recognized apparent ``bar strength'' (SA, SAB, SB) as a continuous property of
galaxies called the ``family''. However, the SA, SAB, and SB families are
purely visual judgments that can have little bearing on the actual bar strength
in a given galaxy. Until very recently, published bar judgments were based
exclusively on blue light images, where internal extinction or star formation
can either mask a bar completely or give the false impression of a bar in a
nonbarred galaxy. Near-infrared camera arrays, which principally trace the old
stellar populations in both normal and barred galaxies, now facilitate a
quantification of bar strength in terms of their gravitational potentials and
force fields. In this paper, we show that the maximum value, Qb, of the ratio
of the tangential force to the mean radial force is a quantitative measure of
the strength of a bar. Qb does not measure bar ellipticity or bar shape, but
rather depends on the actual forcing due to the bar embedded in its disk. We
show that a wide range of true bar strengths characterizes the category ``SB'',
while de Vaucouleurs category ``SAB'' corresponds to a much narrower range of
bar strengths. We present Qb values for 36 galaxies, and we incorporate our bar
classes into a dust-penetrated classification system for spiral galaxies.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal (LaTex, 30
pages + 3 figures); Figs. 1 and 3 are in color and are also available at
http://bama.ua.edu/~rbuta/bars
The Eastern Arm of M83 Revisited: High-Resolution Mapping of 12CO 1-0 Emission
We have used the Owens Valley Millimeter Array to map 12CO (J=1-0) along a
3.5 kpc segment of M83's eastern spiral arm at resolutions of 6.5"x3.5", 10",
and 16". The CO emission in most of this segment lies along the sharp dust lane
demarking the inner edge of the spiral arm, but beyond a certain point along
the arm the emission shifts downstream from the dust lane to become better
aligned with the young stars seen in blue and H-beta images. This morphology
resembles that of the western arm of M100. Three possibilities, none of which
is wholly satisfactory, are considered to explain the deviation of the CO arm
from the dust lane: heating of the CO by UV radiation from young stars, heating
by low-energy cosmic rays, and a molecular medium consisting of two (diffuse
and dense) components which react differently to the density wave. Regardless,
the question of what CO emission traces along this spiral arm is a complicated
one. Strong tangential streaming is observed where the arm crosses the
kinematic major axis of the galaxy, implying that the shear becomes locally
prograde in the arms. Inferred from the streaming is a very high gas surface
density of about 230 solar masses/pc**2 and an arm-interarm contrast greater
than 2.3 in the part of the arm near the major axis. Using two different
criteria, we find that the gas at this location is well above the threshold for
gravitational instability -- much more clearly so than in either M51 or M100.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 25 pages, 5 figures. Manuscript in
LaTeX, figures in pdf. Fig 3 in colo
HII regions in spiral galaxies: Size distribution, luminosity function, and new isochrone diagnostics of density wave kinematics
We investigate the relationship of the HII region luminosity function (HII
LF) to the HII region size distribution and density wave triggering in
grand-design spiral galaxies. We suggest that the differential nebular size
distribution is described by a power law of slope ~ -4, with flattening at
radii below ~ 130 pc. This contrasts with the conventional exponential
description, but it is physically and quantitatively consistent with the
typical observed value of -2 for the HII LF slope.
We have developed an interactive code that computes spatial isochrones for
the evolving loci of spiral density waves in disk galaxies. This allows
comparison of the nebular spatial distribution with the spatial isochrones for
simple rotation curve parameters. Our comparisons for four grand-design
galaxies suggest that the corotation radius r_co coincides with the outer ends
of the star-forming arms. This value for r_co yields the best spatial
correspondence between the HII regions and the isochrones, and also appears to
yield a coincidence between the Inner Lindblad Resonance with the radial onset
of star formation in the arms. Thus, we suggest that isochrones offer a new,
simple, and effective technique for determining r_co, and thus the spiral
pattern speed. However, application of the isochrones also demonstrates that
evolution of the nebular population is difficult to spatially isolate in these
galaxies.Comment: 15 pp, 8 figs, uses emulateapj. Accepted to A
Criteri topologici per l'ottimizzazione sicura di reazioni potenzialmente fuggitive
In this work, optimization procedures, particurarly suitable for potentially runaway reactions carried out in indirectly cooled semibatch reactors operated in isoperibolic temperature control mode, have been developed. Such optimization procedures based on a particular criterion, referred to as "topological", in order tio select a set of operating conditions which is able of ensuring both process thermochemical stability and high productivity and selectivity with respect the desired product. This topological approach has been validated both experimentally and theoretically by studing kinetic schemes characterized by different complexity degrees. As an example, the relevant case study of the free radical emulsion polymerization of vinyl acetate has been analyzed and reported
Removal of a mixture of oxygenated VOCs in a biotrickling filter
[Abstract] Laboratory scale-studies on the biodegradation of a 1:1:1 wt mixture of three oxygenated volatile organic compounds (VOCs), ethanol, ethyl acetate and methyl-ethyl ketone (MEK) in a biotrickling filter were carried out using two identically sized columns, filled with different polypropylene rings. The reactors were seeded with a two-month preconditioned culture from activated sludge. The performance of the biotrickling filters was examined for a continuous period of 4 months at VOC concentration from 125 mg-C/m3 to 550 mg-C/m3 and at gas flow rates of around 1.0 m3/h, 2.0 m3/h and 4.6 m3/h, which correspond to gas empty bed residence times (EBRT) of 68 s, 33 s and 16 s, respectively. Similar performance was obtained for both supports. Intermittent flow rate of trickling liquid was shown as beneficial to improve the removal efficiency of the system. A stratification in the substrate consumption was observed from gas composition profiles, with MEK % in the emission greater than 78%. Continuous VOC feeding resulted in an excessive accumulation of biomass and high pressure drop was developed in less than 20-30 days of operation. Intermittent VOC loading with night and weekend feed cut-off periods passing dried air, but without water addition, was shown as a successful operational mode to control the biofilm thickness. In this case, operation at high inlet loads was extended for more than 50 days maintaining high removal efficiencies and low pressure drops
Dark matter within high surface brightness spiral galaxies
We present results from a detailed dynamical analysis of five high surface
brightness, late type spirals, studied with the aim to quantify the
luminous-to-dark matter ratio inside their optical radii. The galaxies' stellar
light distribution and gas kinematics have been observed and compared to
hydrodynamic gas simulations, which predict the 2D gas dynamics arising in
response to empirical gravitational potentials, which are combinations of
differing stellar disk and dark halo contributions. The gravitational potential
of the stellar disk was derived from near-infrared photometry, color-corrected
to constant (M/L); the dark halo was modelled by an isothermal sphere with a
core. Hydrodynamic gas simulations were performed for each galaxy for a
sequence of five different mass fractions of the stellar disk and for a wide
range of spiral pattern speeds. These two parameters mainly determine the
modelled gas distribution and kinematics. The agreement between the
non-axisymmetric part of the simulated and observed gas kinematics permitted us
to conclude that the galaxies with the highest rotation velocities tend to
possess near-maximal stellar disks. In less massive galaxies, with v_max<200
km/s, the mass of the dark halo at least equals the stellar mass within 2-3
R_disk. The simulated gas morphology provides a powerful tool to determine the
dominant spiral pattern speed. The corotation radius for all galaxies was found
to be constant at R_corotation ~ 3 R_disk and encloses the strong part of the
stellar spiral in all cases.Comment: 28 pages, 7 figures; to appear in the Astrophysical Journal, Vol.
586, March 200
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