User's manual for the TRW gaspipe program. A vapor-gas front analysis program for heat pipes containing noncondensible gas

Digital computer program manual for design, analysis, and performance prediction of heat pipes with noncondensible gases including input/output routines and Runge-Kutta model

The Pathobiology of Neisseria gonorrhoeae Lower Female Genital Tract Infection

Infection and disease associated with Neisseria gonorrhoeae, the gonococcus, continue to be a global health problem. Asymptomatic and subclinical gonococcal infections occur at a high frequency in females; thus, the true incidence of N. gonorrhoeae infections are presumed to be severely underestimated. Inherent to this asymptomatic/subclinical diseased state is the continued prevalence of this organism within the general population, as well as the medical, economic, and social burden equated with the observed chronic, disease sequelae. As infections of the lower female genital tract (i.e., the uterine cervix) commonly result in subclinical disease, it follows that the pathobiology of cervical gonorrhea would differ from that observed for other sites of infection. In this regard, the potential responses to infection that are generated by the female reproductive tract mucosa are unique in that they are governed, in part, by cyclic fluctuations in steroid hormone levels. The lower female genital tract has the further distinction of being able to functionally discriminate between resident commensal microbiota and transient pathogens. The expression of functionally active complement receptor 3 by the lower, but not the upper, female genital tract mucosa; together with data indicating that gonococcal adherence to and invasion of primary cervical epithelial cells and tissue are predominately aided by this surface-expressed host molecule; provide one explanation for asymptomatic/subclinical gonococcal cervicitis. However, co-evolution of the gonococcus with its sole human host has endowed this organism with variable survival strategies that not only aid these bacteria in successfully evasion of immune detection and function but also enhance cervical colonization and cellular invasion. To this end, we herein summarize current knowledge pertaining to the pathobiology of gonococcal infection of the human cervix

User's manual for the TRW gaspipe 2 program: A vapor-gas front analysis program for heat pipes containing non-condensible gas

A digital computer program for design and analysis of heat pipes which contain non-condensible gases, either for temperature control or to aid in start-up from the frozen state, is presented. Some of the calculations which are possible with the program are: (1) wall temperature profile along a gas-loaded heat pipe, (2) amount of gas loading necessary to obtain desired evaporator temperature at a desired heat load, (3) heat load versus evaporator temperature for a fixed amount of gas in the pipe, and (4) heat and mass transfer along the pipe, including the vapor-gas front region

Cross-sectional Structure of the Central Spindle of Diatoma vulgare Evidence for Specific Interactions between Antiparallel Microtubules

During the transition from prometaphase to metaphase, the cross-sectional area of the central spindle of Diatoma decreases by a factor of nearly two, both at the poles and at the region of overlapping microtubules (MTs) near the spindle equator. The density of spindle MT packing stays approximately constant throughout mitosis. Optical diffraction analysis of electron micrographs shows that the packing of the MTs at the poles at all stages of mitosis is similar to that expected for a two-dimensional liquid. Analysis of the region of overlap reveals more packing regularity: during prometaphase, a square packing emerges that displays sufficient organization by late metaphase to generate five orders of diffraction; during anaphase the packing in the overlap region shifts to hexagonal; at telophase, it returns to square. From the data provided by serial section reconstructions of the central spindle, it is possible to identify the polarity of almost every spindle MT, that is, to identify one pole with which the MT is associated. Near neighbor analyses of MTs in cross sections of the overlap region show that MTs prefer antiparallel near neighbors. These near neighbors are most often found at a spacing of approximately 40 nm center-to-center, while parallel near neighbors in the zone of overlap are spaced essentially at random. These results are evidence for a specific interaction between antiparallel MTs. In some sections definite bridges between MTs can be seen. Our findings show that certain necessary conditions for a sliding filament model of anaphase spindle elongation are met

‘A double-edged sword. This is powerful but it could be used destructively’: Perspectives of early career education researchers on learning analytics

Learning analytics has been increasingly outlined as a powerful tool for measuring, analysing, and predicting learning experiences and behaviours. The rising use of learning analytics means that many educational researchers now require new ranges of technical analytical skills to contribute to an increasingly data-heavy field. However, it has been argued that educational data scientists are a ‘scarce breed’ (Buckingham Shum et al., 2013) and that more resources are needed to support the next generation of early career researchers in the education field. At the same time, little is known about how early career education researchers feel towards learning analytics and whether it is important to their current and future research practices. Using a thematic analysis of a participatory learning analytics workshop discussions with 25 early career education researchers, we outline in this article their ambitions, challenges and anxieties towards learning analytics. In doing so, we have provided a roadmap for how the learning analytics field might evolve and practical implications for supporting early career researchers’ development

Estimating the upper limit of prehistoric peak ground acceleration using an in situ, intact and vulnerable stalagmite from Plavecka priepast cave (Detrekoi-zsomboly), Little Carpathians, Slovakia-first results

Earthquakes hit urban centres in Europe infrequently, but occasionally with disastrous effects. Obtaining an unbiased view of seismic hazard (and risk) is therefore very important. In principle, the best way to test probabilistic seismic hazard assessments (PSHAs) is to compare them with observations that are entirely independent of the procedure used to produce PSHA models. Arguably, the most valuable information in this context should be information on long-term hazard, namely maximum intensities (or magnitudes) occurring over time intervals that are at least as long as a seismic cycle. The new observations can provide information of maximum intensity (or magnitude) for long timescale as an input data for PSHA studies as well. Long-term information can be gained from intact stalagmites in natural caves. These formations survived all earthquakes that have occurred over thousands of years, depending on the age of the stalagmite. Their 'survival' requires that the horizontal ground acceleration (HGA) has never exceeded a certain critical value within that time period. Here, we present such a stalagmite-based case study from the Little Carpathians of Slovakia. A specially shaped, intact and vulnerable stalagmite in the Plavecka priepast cave was examined in 2013. This stalagmite is suitable for estimating the upper limit of horizontal peak ground acceleration generated by prehistoric earthquakes. The critical HGA values as a function of time going back into the past determined from the stalagmite that we investigated are presented. For example, at the time of Joko event (1906), the critical HGA value cannot have been higher than 1 and 1.3 m/s(2) at the time of the assumed Carnuntum event (similar to 340 AD), and 3000 years ago, it must have been lower than 1.7 m/s(2). We claimed that the effect of Joko earthquake (1906) on the location of the Plavecka priepast cave is consistent with the critical HGA value provided by the stalagmite we investigated. The approach used in this study yields significant new constraints on the seismic hazard, as tectonic structures close to Plavecka priepast cave did not generate strong earthquakes in the last few thousand years. The results of this study are highly relevant given that the two capitals, Vienna and Bratislava, are located within 40 and 70 km of the cave, respectively.Web of Science2151130111

Lebowitz Inequalities for Ashkin-Teller Systems

We consider the Ashkin-Teller model with negative four-spin coupling but still in the region where the ground state is ferromagnetic. We establish the standard Lebowitz inequality as well as the extension that is necessary to prove a divergent susceptibility.Comment: Ams-TeX, 12 pages; two references added, final version accepted for publication in Physica

A flexible framework for evaluating the socio-cultural impacts of a small festival

The increasing popularity of festivals and events, coupled with their positive and negative impacts on host communities, has led to a growing body of research on the impacts of festivals and events. As a substantial amount of this research has focused on assessing the economic impacts of festivals, there is growing demand for the measurement of the socio-cultural impacts of these festivals and events. To address this issue a study was conducted that developed a framework for the social impact evaluation of festivals and piloted a tool that measured the community perceptions of socio-cultural impacts

Religiosity and Sexual Risk Behaviors Among Latina Adolescents: Trends from 1995 to 2008

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine trends in the influence of religiosity on sexual activity of Latina adolescents in the United States from 1995 to 2008 and to determine if differences existed between the Mexican American and other Latina groups. Methods: The sample comprised the subset of unmarried, 15–21-year-old (mean 17 years) Latina female respondents in the 1995 (n=267), 2002 (n=306), and 2006–2008 (n=400) National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG) datasets. Associations between religiosity (importance of religion and service attendance) and history of ever having sex, number of sex partners, and age of sexual debut were investigated. Results: Less than one half of Latinas in 1995 (44%) and in 2006–2008 (44%) reported that religion was very important to them, whereas in 2002, 50% reported it was important. Only in 1995 did Latinas who viewed religion as very important have a significantly lower level of sexual initiation. In 1995 and in 2006–2008, Latinas who held religion as very important had significantly fewer partners. In all three cohorts, the higher religious importance group had higher virgin survival rates. Across cohorts, approximately one third of respondents reported frequent religious attendance. In all cohorts, frequent attenders were less likely to have had sex, had fewer partners, and had older age at sexual debut. The survival rate as virgins for Mexican origin Latinas was higher in 1995 and 2002 compared to non-Mexican Latinas but was almost the same in 2006–2008. Conclusions: Religiosity had a protective association with sexual activity among Latina adolescents. The association of importance of religion with sexual activity has diminished from 1995 to 2008, however, whereas the importance of service attendance has remained stable. The influence of religion was more apparent among the Latinas of Mexican origin, but this greater influence also diminished by 2006–2008

Variational study of a dilute Bose condensate in a harmonic trap

A two-parameter trial condensate wave function is used to find an approximate variational solution to the Gross-Pitaevskii equation for $N_0$ condensed bosons in an isotropic harmonic trap with oscillator length $d_0$ and interacting through a repulsive two-body scattering length $a>0$. The dimensionless parameter ${\cal N}_0 \equiv N_0a/d_0$ characterizes the effect of the interparticle interactions, with ${\cal N}_0 \ll 1$ for an ideal gas and ${\cal N}_0 \gg 1$ for a strongly interacting system (the Thomas-Fermi limit). The trial function interpolates smoothly between these two limits, and the three separate contributions (kinetic energy, trap potential energy, and two-body interaction energy) to the variational condensate energy and the condensate chemical potential are determined parametrically for any value of ${\cal N}_0$, along with illustrative numerical values. The straightforward generalization to an anisotropic harmonic trap is considered briefly.Comment: 14 pages, RevTeX, submitted to Journal of Low Temperature Physic