865 research outputs found
Fluctuations and Pinch-Offs Observed in Viscous Fingering
Our experiments on viscous (Saffman-Taylor) fingering in Hele-Shaw channels
reveal several phenomena that were not observed in previous experiments. At low
flow rates, growing fingers undergo width fluctuations that intermittently
narrow the finger as they evolve. The magnitude of these fluctuations is
proportional to Ca^{-0.64}, where Ca is the capillary number, which is
proportional to the finger velocity. This relation holds for all aspect ratios
studied up to the onset of tip instabilities. At higher flow rates, finger
pinch-off and reconnection events are observed. These events appear to be
caused by an interaction between the actively growing finger and suppressed
fingers at the back of the channel. Both the fluctuation and pinch-off
phenomena are robust but not explained by current theory.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures; to appear in Proceedings of the Seventh
Experimental Chaos Conferenc
Fluctuations and Pinch-Offs Observed in Viscous Fingering
Our experiments on viscous (Saffman-Taylor) fingering in Hele-Shaw channels
reveal several phenomena that were not observed in previous experiments. At low
flow rates, growing fingers undergo width fluctuations that intermittently
narrow the finger as they evolve. The magnitude of these fluctuations is
proportional to Ca^{-0.64}, where Ca is the capillary number, which is
proportional to the finger velocity. This relation holds for all aspect ratios
studied up to the onset of tip instabilities. At higher flow rates, finger
pinch-off and reconnection events are observed. These events appear to be
caused by an interaction between the actively growing finger and suppressed
fingers at the back of the channel. Both the fluctuation and pinch-off
phenomena are robust but not explained by current theory.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures; to appear in Proceedings of the Seventh
Experimental Chaos Conferenc
Reconstruction of contaminant trends in a salt wedge estuary with sediment cores dated using a multiple proxy approach
The Taunton River is a partially mixed tidal estuary in southeastern Massachusetts (USA) which has received significant contaminant inputs, yet little information exists on the history of discharge and the subsequent fate of these contaminants. Three sediment cores taken along a transect were analyzed, reconstructing the spatial and temporal trends of pollution in the estuary. A combination of radiometric dating, contaminant markers, and storm layers from major hurricanes were used to establish age models and sedimentation rates. Age estimates obtained from the different dating methods compared well, establishing an accurate history of contaminant release to the estuary. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were present in one core at depths corresponding to the early 1860s, earlier than previously established dates of introduction. Temporal and spatial trends of Cr, Cu, Hg and Pb indicated multiple sources of varying input to the river. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were present in each of the cores from the 1930s onward, with elevated levels still present in surficial sediments at several sites. A unique organic compound, Topanol, which was produced locally was used as a tracer to track contaminant transport in the river. Tracer data indicates that contaminants are still being transported and deposited to surficial sediments at high concentrations well after their discharge. This reconstruction demonstrates the utility of using multiple dating proxies where often the sole use of radiometric dating techniques is not an option and provides insights into the fate of contaminants discharged decades ago but continue to represent environmental risks
Fluctuations in viscous fingering
Our experiments on viscous (Saffman-Taylor) fingering in Hele-Shaw channels
reveal finger width fluctuations that were not observed in previous
experiments, which had lower aspect ratios and higher capillary numbers Ca.
These fluctuations intermittently narrow the finger from its expected width.
The magnitude of these fluctuations is described by a power law, Ca^{-0.64},
which holds for all aspect ratios studied up to the onset of tip instabilities.
Further, for large aspect ratios, the mean finger width exhibits a maximum as
Ca is decreased instead of the predicted monotonic increase.Comment: Revised introduction, smoothed transitions in paper body, and added a
few additional minor results. (Figures unchanged.) 4 pages, 3 figures.
Submitted to PRE Rapi
Fuzzy Sphere Dynamics and Non-Abelian DBI in Curved Backgrounds
We consider the non-Abelian action for the dynamics of -branes in the
background of -branes, which parameterises a fuzzy sphere using the SU(2)
algebra. We find that the curved background leads to collapsing solutions for
the fuzzy sphere except when we have branes in the background, which
is a realisation of the gravitational Myers effect. Furthermore we find the
equations of motion in the Abelian and non-Abelian theories are identical in
the large limit. By picking a specific ansatz we find that we can
incorporate angular momentum into the action, although this imposes restriction
upon the dimensionality of the background solutions. We also consider the case
of non-Abelian non-BPS branes, and examine the resultant dynamics using
world-volume symmetry transformations. We find that the fuzzy sphere always
collapses but the solutions are sensitive to the combination of the two
conserved charges and we can find expanding solutions with turning points. We
go on to consider the coincident 5-brane background, and again construct
the non-Abelian theory for both BPS and non-BPS branes. In the latter case we
must use symmetry arguments to find additional conserved charges on the
world-volumes to solve the equations of motion. We find that in the Non-BPS
case there is a turning solution for specific regions of the tachyon and radion
fields. Finally we investigate the more general dynamics of fuzzy
in the -brane background, and find collapsing solutions
in all cases.Comment: 49 pages, 3 figures, Latex; Version to appear in JHE
Using Early Data to Illuminate the Pioneer Anomaly
Analysis of the radio tracking data from the Pioneer 10/11 spacecraft at
distances between about 20 - 70 AU from the Sun has consistently indicated the
presence of an unmodeled, small, constant, Doppler blue shift drift of order 6
\times 10^{-9} Hz/s. After accounting for systematics, this drift can be
interpreted as a constant acceleration of a_P= (8.74 \pm 1.33) \times 10^{-8}
cm/s^2 directed towards the Sun, or perhaps as a time acceleration of a_t =
(2.92 \pm 0.44)\times 10^{-18} s/s^2. Although it is suspected that there is a
systematic origin to this anomaly, none has been unambiguously demonstrated. We
review the current status of the anomaly, and then point out how the analysis
of early data, which was never analyzed in detail, could allow a more clear
understanding of the origin of the anomaly, be it a systematic or a
manifestation of unsuspected physics.Comment: 19 pages, 6 figures, 2 tables, additional materia
The Effects of Nicotine in the Neonatal Quinpirole Rodent Model of Psychosis: Neural Plasticity Mechanisms and Nicotinic Receptor Changes
Neonatal quinpirole (NQ) treatment to rats increases dopamine D2 receptor sensitivity persistent throughout the animalâs lifetime. In Experiment 1, we analyzed the role of α7 and α4ÎČ2 nicotinic receptors (nAChRs) in nicotine behavioral sensitization and on the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) response to nicotine in NQ- and neonatally saline (NS)-treated rats. In Experiment 2, we analyzed changes in α7 and α4ÎČ2 nAChR density in the nucleus accumbens (NAcc) and dorsal striatum in NQ and NS animals sensitized to nicotine. Male and female Sprague-Dawley rats were neonatally treated with quinpirole (1 mg/kg) or saline from postnatal days (P)1â21. Animals were given ip injections of either saline or nicotine (0.5 mg/kg free base) every second day from P33 to P49 and tested on behavioral sensitization. Before each injection, animals were ip administered the α7 nAChR antagonist methyllycaconitine (MLA; 2 or 4 mg/kg) or the α4ÎČ2 nAChR antagonist dihydro beta erythroidine (DhÎČE; 1 or 3 mg/kg).
Results revealed NQ enhanced nicotine sensitization that was blocked by DhÎČE. MLA blocked the enhanced nicotine sensitization in NQ animals, but did not block nicotine sensitization. NQ enhanced the NAcc BDNF response to nicotine which was blocked by both antagonists. In Experiment 2, NQ enhanced nicotine sensitization and enhanced α4ÎČ2, but not 7, nAChR upregulation in the NAcc. These results suggest a relationship between accumbal BDNF and α4ÎČ2 nAChRs and their role in the behavioral response to nicotine in the NQ model which has relevance to schizophrenia, a behavioral disorder with high rates of tobacco smoking
Angiogenic regulatory influence of extracellular matrix deposited by resting state asthmatic and non-asthmatic airway smooth muscle cells is similar
The extracellular matrix (ECM) is the tissue microenvironment that regulates the characteristics of stromal and systemic cells to control processes such as inflammation and angiogenesis. Despite ongoing anti-inflammatory treatment, low levels of inflammation exist in the airways in asthma, which alters ECM deposition by airway smooth muscle (ASM) cells. The altered ECM causes aberrant behaviour of cells, such as endothelial cells, in the airway tissue. We therefore sought to characterize the composition and angiogenic potential of the ECM deposited by asthmatic and non-asthmatic ASM. After 72 hours under non-stimulated conditions, the ECM deposited by primary human asthmatic ASM cells was equal in total protein, collagen I, III and fibronectin content to that from non-asthmatic ASM cells. Further, the matrices of non-asthmatic and asthmatic ASM cells were equivalent in regulating the growth, activity, attachment and migration of primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Under basal conditions, asthmatic and non-asthmatic ASM cells intrinsically deposit an ECM of equivalent composition and angiogenic potential. Previous findings indicate that dysregulation of the airway ECM is driven even by low levels of inflammatory provocation. This study suggests the need for more effective anti-inflammatory therapies in asthma to maintain the airway ECM and regulate ECM-mediated aberrant angiogenesis.</p
Angiogenic regulatory influence of extracellular matrix deposited by resting state asthmatic and non-asthmatic airway smooth muscle cells is similar
The extracellular matrix (ECM) is the tissue microenvironment that regulates the characteristics of stromal and systemic cells to control processes such as inflammation and angiogenesis. Despite ongoing antiâinflammatory treatment, low levels of inflammation exist in the airways in asthma, which alters ECM deposition by airway smooth muscle (ASM) cells. The altered ECM causes aberrant behaviour of cells, such as endothelial cells, in the airway tissue. We therefore sought to characterize the composition and angiogenic potential of the ECM deposited by asthmatic and nonâasthmatic ASM. After 72Â hours under nonâstimulated conditions, the ECM deposited by primary human asthmatic ASM cells was equal in total protein, collagen I, III and fibronectin content to that from nonâasthmatic ASM cells. Further, the matrices of nonâasthmatic and asthmatic ASM cells were equivalent in regulating the growth, activity, attachment and migration of primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Under basal conditions, asthmatic and nonâasthmatic ASM cells intrinsically deposit an ECM of equivalent composition and angiogenic potential. Previous findings indicate that dysregulation of the airway ECM is driven even by low levels of inflammatory provocation. This study suggests the need for more effective antiâinflammatory therapies in asthma to maintain the airway ECM and regulate ECMâmediated aberrant angiogenesis
Geometrical Tachyon Kinks and NS5 Branes
We further investigate the 5 ring background using the tachyon map.
Mapping the radion fields to the rolling tachyon helps to explain the motion of
a probe -brane in this background. It turns out that the radion field
becomes tachyonic when the brane is confined to one dimensional motion inside
the ring. We find explicit solutions for the geometrical tachyon field that
describe stable kink solutions which are similar to those of the open string
tachyon. Interestingly in the case of the geometric tachyon, the dynamics is
controlled by a cosine potential. In addition, we couple a constant electric
field to the probe-brane, but find that the only stable kink solutions occur
when there is zero electric field or a critical field value. We also
investigate the behaviour of Non-BPS branes in this background, and find that
the end state of any probe brane is that of tachyonic matter 'trapped' around
the interior of the ring. We conclude by considering compactification of the
ring solution in one of the transverse directions.Comment: Latex, 24 pages, 1 eps fig; clarifying comments added to Section 2;
typos correcte
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