751 research outputs found
Interstellar Dust Close to the Sun
The low density interstellar medium (ISM) close to the Sun and inside of the
heliosphere provides a unique laboratory for studying interstellar dust grains.
Grain characteristics in the nearby ISM are obtained from observations of
interstellar gas and dust inside of the heliosphere and the interstellar gas
towards nearby stars. Comparison between the gas composition and solar
abundances suggests that grains are dominated by olivines and possibly some
form of iron oxide. Measurements of the interstellar Ne/O ratio by the
Interstellar Boundary Explorer spacecraft indicate that a high fraction of
interstellar oxygen in the ISM must be depleted onto dust grains. Local
interstellar abundances are consistent with grain destruction in ~150 km/s
interstellar shocks, provided that the carbonaceous component is hydrogenated
amorphous carbon and carbon abundances are correct. Variations in relative
abundances of refractories in gas suggest variations in the history of grain
destruction in nearby ISM. The large observed grains, > 1 micron, may indicate
a nearby reservoir of denser ISM. Theoretical three-dimensional models of the
interaction between interstellar dust grains and the solar wind predict that
plumes of about 0.18 micron dust grains form around the heliosphere.Comment: 2011 AGOS Taiwan meeting; accepted for publication in Earth, Planets
and Spac
Interstellar Matter and the Boundary Conditions of the Heliosphere
The interstellar cloud surrounding the solar system regulates the galactic
environment of the Sun, and determines the boundary conditions of the
heliosphere. Both the Sun and interstellar clouds move through space, so these
boundary conditions change with time. Data and theoretical models now support
densities in the cloud surrounding the solar system of n(HI)=0.22+/-0.06 cm^-3,
and n(e-)~0.1 cm-3, with larger values allowed for n(HI) by radiative transfer
considerations. Ulysses and Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer satellite HeI data
yield a cloud temperature of 6,400 K. Nearby interstellar gas appears to be
structured and inhomogeneous. The interstellar gas in the Local Fluff cloud
complex exhibits elemental abundance patterns in which refractory elements are
enhanced over the depleted abundances found in cold disk gas. Within a few
parsecs of the Sun, inconclusive evidence for factors of 2--5 variation in MgII
and FeII gas phase abundances is found, providing evidence for variable grain
destruction. Observations of the hydrogen pile-up at the nose of the
heliosphere are consistent with a barely subsonic motion of the heliosphere
with respect to the surrounding interstellar cloud. Uncertainties on the
velocity vector of the cloud that surrounds the solar system indicate that it
is uncertain as to whether the Sun and alpha Cen are or are not immersed in the
same interstellar cloud.Comment: 24 pages 3 figure
The Emerging Scholarly Brain
It is now a commonplace observation that human society is becoming a coherent
super-organism, and that the information infrastructure forms its emerging
brain. Perhaps, as the underlying technologies are likely to become billions of
times more powerful than those we have today, we could say that we are now
building the lizard brain for the future organism.Comment: to appear in Future Professional Communication in Astronomy-II
(FPCA-II) editors A. Heck and A. Accomazz
Vortices in (2+1)d Conformal Fluids
We study isolated, stationary, axially symmetric vortex solutions in
(2+1)-dimensional viscous conformal fluids. The equations describing them can
be brought to the form of three coupled first order ODEs for the radial and
rotational velocities and the temperature. They have a rich space of solutions
characterized by the radial energy and angular momentum fluxes. We do a
detailed study of the phases in the one-parameter family of solutions with no
energy flux. This parameter is the product of the asymptotic vorticity and
temperature. When it is large, the radial fluid velocity reaches the speed of
light at a finite inner radius. When it is below a critical value, the velocity
is everywhere bounded, but at the origin there is a discontinuity. We comment
on turbulence, potential gravity duals, non-viscous limits and non-relativistic
limits.Comment: 39 pages, 10 eps figures, v2: Minor changes, refs, preprint numbe
Long term time variability of cosmic rays and possible relevance to the development of life on Earth
An analysis is made of the manner in which the cosmic ray intensity at Earth
has varied over its existence and its possible relevance to both the origin and
the evolution of life. Much of the analysis relates to the 'high energy' cosmic
rays () and their variability due to the changing
proximity of the solar system to supernova remnants which are generally
believed to be responsible for most cosmic rays up to PeV energies. It is
pointed out that, on a statistical basis, there will have been considerable
variations in the likely 100 My between the Earth's biosphere reaching
reasonable stability and the onset of very elementary life. Interestingly,
there is the increasingly strong possibility that PeV cosmic rays are
responsible for the initiation of terrestrial lightning strokes and the
possibility arises of considerable increases in the frequency of lightnings and
thereby the formation of some of the complex molecules which are the 'building
blocks of life'. Attention is also given to the well known generation of the
oxides of nitrogen by lightning strokes which are poisonous to animal life but
helpful to plant growth; here, too, the violent swings of cosmic ray
intensities may have had relevance to evolutionary changes. A particular
variant of the cosmic ray acceleration model, put forward by us, predicts an
increase in lightning rate in the past and this has been sought in Korean
historical records. Finally, the time dependence of the overall cosmic ray
intensity, which manifests itself mainly at sub-10 GeV energies, has been
examined. The relevance of cosmic rays to the 'global electrical circuit'
points to the importance of this concept.Comment: 18 pages, 5 figures, accepted by 'Surveys in Geophysics
Neuroblastoma Cell Death is Induced by Inorganic Arsenic Trioxide (As2O3) and Inhibited by a Normal Human Bone Marrow Cell-Derived Factor
Three phenotypically distinct cell types are present in human neuroblastomas (NB) and NB cell lines: I-type stem cells, N-type neuroblastic precursors, and S-type Schwannian/melanoblastic precursors. The stimulation of human N-type neuroblastoma cell proliferation by normal human bone marrow monocytic cell conditioned medium (BMCM) has been demonstrated in vitro, a finding consistent with the high frequency of bone marrow (BM) metastases in patients with advanced NB. Inorganic arsenic trioxide (As2O3), already clinically approved for the treatment of several hematological malignancies, is currently under investigation for NB. Recent studies show that As2O3 induces apoptosis in NB cells. We examined the impact of BMCM on growth and survival of As2O3-treated NB cell lines, to evaluate the response of cultured NB cell variants to regulatory agents. We studied the effect of BMCM on survival and clonogenic growth of eleven As2O3-treated NB cell lines grown in sparsely seeded, non-adherent, semi-solid cultures. As2O3 had a strong inhibitory effect on survival of all tested NB cell lines. BMCM augmented cell growth and survival and reversed the inhibitory action of As2O3 in all tested cell lines, but most strongly in N-type cells. While As2O3 effectively reduced survival of all tested NB cell lines, BMCM effectively impacted its inhibitory action. Better understanding of micro-environmental regulators affecting human NB tumor cell growth and survival may be seminal to the development of therapeutic strategies and clinically effective agents for this condition
A mathematical and computational review of Hartree-Fock SCF methods in Quantum Chemistry
We present here a review of the fundamental topics of Hartree-Fock theory in
Quantum Chemistry. From the molecular Hamiltonian, using and discussing the
Born-Oppenheimer approximation, we arrive to the Hartree and Hartree-Fock
equations for the electronic problem. Special emphasis is placed in the most
relevant mathematical aspects of the theoretical derivation of the final
equations, as well as in the results regarding the existence and uniqueness of
their solutions. All Hartree-Fock versions with different spin restrictions are
systematically extracted from the general case, thus providing a unifying
framework. Then, the discretization of the one-electron orbitals space is
reviewed and the Roothaan-Hall formalism introduced. This leads to a exposition
of the basic underlying concepts related to the construction and selection of
Gaussian basis sets, focusing in algorithmic efficiency issues. Finally, we
close the review with a section in which the most relevant modern developments
(specially those related to the design of linear-scaling methods) are commented
and linked to the issues discussed. The whole work is intentionally
introductory and rather self-contained, so that it may be useful for non
experts that aim to use quantum chemical methods in interdisciplinary
applications. Moreover, much material that is found scattered in the literature
has been put together here to facilitate comprehension and to serve as a handy
reference.Comment: 64 pages, 3 figures, tMPH2e.cls style file, doublesp, mathbbol and
subeqn package
Lattice Boltzmann simulations of soft matter systems
This article concerns numerical simulations of the dynamics of particles
immersed in a continuum solvent. As prototypical systems, we consider colloidal
dispersions of spherical particles and solutions of uncharged polymers. After a
brief explanation of the concept of hydrodynamic interactions, we give a
general overview over the various simulation methods that have been developed
to cope with the resulting computational problems. We then focus on the
approach we have developed, which couples a system of particles to a lattice
Boltzmann model representing the solvent degrees of freedom. The standard D3Q19
lattice Boltzmann model is derived and explained in depth, followed by a
detailed discussion of complementary methods for the coupling of solvent and
solute. Colloidal dispersions are best described in terms of extended particles
with appropriate boundary conditions at the surfaces, while particles with
internal degrees of freedom are easier to simulate as an arrangement of mass
points with frictional coupling to the solvent. In both cases, particular care
has been taken to simulate thermal fluctuations in a consistent way. The
usefulness of this methodology is illustrated by studies from our own research,
where the dynamics of colloidal and polymeric systems has been investigated in
both equilibrium and nonequilibrium situations.Comment: Review article, submitted to Advances in Polymer Science. 16 figures,
76 page
Eliminating the mystery from the concept of emergence
While some branches of complexity theory are advancing rapidly, the same cannot be said for our understanding of emergence. Despite a complete knowledge of the rules underlying the interactions between the parts of many systems, we are often baffled by their sudden transitions from simple to complex. Here I propose a solution to this conceptual problem. Given that emergence is often the result of many interactions occurring simultaneously in time and space, an ability to intuitively grasp it would require the ability to consciously think in parallel. A simple exercise is used to demonstrate that we do not possess this ability. Our surprise at the behaviour of cellular automata models, and the natural cases of pattern formation they mimic, is then explained from this perspective. This work suggests that the cognitive limitations of the mind can be as significant a barrier to scientific progress as the limitations of our senses
Roles for the coactivators CBP and p300 and the APC/C E3 ubiquitin ligase in E1A-dependent cell transformation
Adenovirus early region 1A (E1A) possesses potent transforming activity when expressed in concert with activated ras or E1B genes in in vitro tissue culture systems such as embryonic human retinal neuroepithelial cells or embryonic rodent epithelial and fibroblast cells. Early region 1A has thus been used extensively and very effectively as a tool to determine the molecular mechanisms that underlie the basis of cellular transformation. In this regard, roles for the E1A-binding proteins pRb, p107, p130, cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (CBP)/p300, p400, TRRAP and CtBP in cellular transformation have been established. However, the mechanisms by which E1A promotes transformation through interaction with these partner proteins are not fully delineated. In this review, we focus on recent advances in our understanding of CBP/p300 function, particularly with regard to its relationship to the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome E3 ubiquitin ligase, which has recently been shown to interact and affect the activity of CBP/p300 through interaction domains that are evolutionarily conserved in E1A
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