2,011 research outputs found
Robust and parallel scalable iterative solutions for large-scale finite cell analyses
The finite cell method is a highly flexible discretization technique for
numerical analysis on domains with complex geometries. By using a non-boundary
conforming computational domain that can be easily meshed, automatized
computations on a wide range of geometrical models can be performed.
Application of the finite cell method, and other immersed methods, to large
real-life and industrial problems is often limited due to the conditioning
problems associated with these methods. These conditioning problems have caused
researchers to resort to direct solution methods, which signifi- cantly limit
the maximum size of solvable systems. Iterative solvers are better suited for
large-scale computations than their direct counterparts due to their lower
memory requirements and suitability for parallel computing. These benefits can,
however, only be exploited when systems are properly conditioned. In this
contribution we present an Additive-Schwarz type preconditioner that enables
efficient and parallel scalable iterative solutions of large-scale multi-level
hp-refined finite cell analyses.Comment: 32 pages, 17 figure
Waveguide grating mirror in a fully suspended 10 meter Fabry-Perot cavity
We report on the first demonstration of a fully suspended 10m Fabry-Perot
cavity incorporating a waveguide grating as the coupling mirror. The cavity was
kept on resonance by reading out the length fluctuations via the
Pound-Drever-Hall method and employing feedback to the laser frequency. From
the achieved finesse of 790 the grating reflectivity was determined to exceed
99.2% at the laser wavelength of 1064\,nm, which is in good agreement with
rigorous simulations. Our waveguide grating design was based on tantala and
fused silica and included a ~20nm thin etch stop layer made of Al2O3 that
allowed us to define the grating depth accurately during the fabrication
process. Demonstrating stable operation of a waveguide grating featuring high
reflectivity in a suspended low-noise cavity, our work paves the way for the
potential application of waveguide gratings as mirrors in high-precision
interferometry, for instance in future gravitational wave observatories
A new mechanism for electron spin echo envelope modulation
Electron spin echo envelope modulation (ESEEM) has been observed for the
first time from a coupled hetero-spin pair of electron and nucleus in liquid
solution. Previously, modulation effects in spin echo experiments have only
been described in liquid solutions for a coupled pair of homonuclear spins in
NMR or a pair of resonant electron spins in EPR. We observe low-frequency ESEEM
(26 and 52 kHz) due to a new mechanism present for any electron spin with S>1/2
that is hyperfine coupled to a nuclear spin. In our case these are electron
spin (S=3/2) and nuclear spin (I=1) in the endohedral fullerene N@C60. The
modulation is shown to arise from second order effects in the isotropic
hyperfine coupling of an electron and 14N nucleus.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure
The use of biomedicine, complementary and alternative medicine, and ethnomedicine for the treatment of epilepsy among people of South Asian origin in the UK
Studies have shown that a significant proportion of people with epilepsy use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). CAM use is known to vary between different ethnic groups and cultural contexts; however, little attention has been devoted to inter-ethnic differences within the UK population. We studied the use of biomedicine, complementary and alternative medicine, and ethnomedicine in a sample of people with epilepsy of South Asian origin living in the north of England.
Interviews were conducted with 30 people of South Asian origin and 16 carers drawn from a sampling frame of patients over 18 years old with epilepsy, compiled from epilepsy registers and hospital databases. All interviews were tape-recorded, translated if required and transcribed. A framework approach was adopted to analyse the data.
All those interviewed were taking conventional anti-epileptic drugs. Most had also sought help from traditional South Asian practitioners, but only two people had tried conventional CAM. Decisions to consult a traditional healer were taken by families rather than by individuals with epilepsy. Those who made the decision to consult a traditional healer were usually older family members and their motivations and perceptions of safety and efficacy often differed from those of the recipients of the treatment. No-one had discussed the use of traditional therapies with their doctor. The patterns observed in the UK mirrored those reported among people with epilepsy in India and Pakistan.
The health care-seeking behaviour of study participants, although mainly confined within the ethnomedicine sector, shared much in common with that of people who use global CAM. The appeal of traditional therapies lay in their religious and moral legitimacy within the South Asian community, especially to the older generation who were disproportionately influential in the determination of treatment choices. As a second generation made up of people of Pakistani origin born in the UK reach the age when they are the influential decision makers in their families, resort to traditional therapies may decline. People had long experience of navigating plural systems of health care and avoided potential conflict by maintaining strict separation between different sectors. Health care practitioners need to approach these issues with sensitivity and to regard traditional healers as potential allies, rather than competitors or quacks
Landscape science: a Russian geographical tradition
The Russian geographical tradition of landscape science (landshaftovedenie) is analyzed with particular reference to its initiator, Lev Semenovich Berg (1876-1950). The differences between prevailing Russian and Western concepts of landscape in geography are discussed, and their common origins in German geographical thought in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries are delineated. It is argued that the principal differences are accounted for by a number of factors, of which Russia's own distinctive tradition in environmental science deriving from the work of V. V. Dokuchaev (1846-1903), the activities of certain key individuals (such as Berg and C. O. Sauer), and the very different social and political circumstances in different parts of the world appear to be the most significant. At the same time it is noted that neither in Russia nor in the West have geographers succeeded in specifying an agreed and unproblematic understanding of landscape, or more broadly in promoting a common geographical conception of human-environment relationships. In light of such uncertainties, the latter part of the article argues for closer international links between the variant landscape traditions in geography as an important contribution to the quest for sustainability
Analytic Controllability of Time-Dependent Quantum Control Systems
The question of controllability is investigated for a quantum control system
in which the Hamiltonian operator components carry explicit time dependence
which is not under the control of an external agent. We consider the general
situation in which the state moves in an infinite-dimensional Hilbert space, a
drift term is present, and the operators driving the state evolution may be
unbounded. However, considerations are restricted by the assumption that there
exists an analytic domain, dense in the state space, on which solutions of the
controlled Schrodinger equation may be expressed globally in exponential form.
The issue of controllability then naturally focuses on the ability to steer the
quantum state on a finite-dimensional submanifold of the unit sphere in Hilbert
space -- and thus on analytic controllability. A relatively straightforward
strategy allows the extension of Lie-algebraic conditions for strong analytic
controllability derived earlier for the simpler, time-independent system in
which the drift Hamiltonian and the interaction Hamiltonia have no intrinsic
time dependence. Enlarging the state space by one dimension corresponding to
the time variable, we construct an augmented control system that can be treated
as time-independent. Methods developed by Kunita can then be implemented to
establish controllability conditions for the one-dimension-reduced system
defined by the original time-dependent Schrodinger control problem. The
applicability of the resulting theorem is illustrated with selected examples.Comment: 13 page
Comprehensive analysis of the chromatin landscape in Drosophila melanogaster.
Chromatin is composed of DNA and a variety of modified histones and non-histone proteins, which have an impact on cell differentiation, gene regulation and other key cellular processes. Here we present a genome-wide chromatin landscape for Drosophila melanogaster based on eighteen histone modifications, summarized by nine prevalent combinatorial patterns. Integrative analysis with other data (non-histone chromatin proteins, DNase I hypersensitivity, GRO-Seq reads produced by engaged polymerase, short/long RNA products) reveals discrete characteristics of chromosomes, genes, regulatory elements and other functional domains. We find that active genes display distinct chromatin signatures that are correlated with disparate gene lengths, exon patterns, regulatory functions and genomic contexts. We also demonstrate a diversity of signatures among Polycomb targets that include a subset with paused polymerase. This systematic profiling and integrative analysis of chromatin signatures provides insights into how genomic elements are regulated, and will serve as a resource for future experimental investigations of genome structure and function
Disinfection of football protective equipment using chlorine dioxide produced by the ICA TriNova system
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Backround</p> <p>Community-associated methicillin-resistant <it>Staphylococcus aureus </it>outbreaks have occurred in individuals engaged in athletic activities such as wrestling and football. Potential disease reduction interventions include the reduction or elimination of bacteria on common use items such as equipment. Chlorine dioxide has a long history of use as a disinfectant. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the ability of novel portable chlorine dioxide generation devices to eliminate bacteria contamination of helmets and pads used by individuals engaged in football.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In field studies, the number of bacteria associated with heavily used football helmets and shoulder pads was determined before and after overnight treatment with chlorine dioxide gas. Bacteria were recovered using cotton swabs and plated onto trypticase soy agar plates. In laboratory studies, <it>Staphylococcus aureus </it>was applied directly to pads. The penetration of bacteria into the pads was determined by inoculating agar plates with portions of the pads taken from the different layers of padding. The ability to eliminate bacteria on the pad surface and underlying foam layers after treatment with chlorine dioxide was also determined.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Rates of recovery of bacteria after treatment clearly demonstrated that chlorine dioxide significantly (p < 0.001) reduce and eliminated bacteria found on the surface of pads. For example, the soft surface of shoulder pads from a university averaged 2.7 × 10<sup>3 </sup>recoverable bacteria colonies before chlorine dioxide treatment and 1.3 × 10<sup>2 </sup>recoverable colonies after treatment. In addition, the gas was capable of penetrating the mesh surface layer and killing bacteria in the underlying foam pad layers. Here, 7 × 10<sup>3 </sup>to 4.5 × 10<sup>3 </sup>laboratory applied <it>S. aureus </it>colonies were recovered from underlying layers before treatment and 0 colonies were present after treatment. Both naturally occurring bacteria and <it>S. aureus </it>were susceptible to the treatment process.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Results of this study have shown that chlorine dioxide can easily and safely be used to eliminate bacteria contamination of protective pads used by football players. This could serve to reduce exposure to potential pathogens such as the methicillin-resistant <it>Staphylococcus aureus </it>among this group of individuals.</p
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