434 research outputs found
The Onset of Phase Transitions in Condensed Matter and Relativistic QFT
Kibble and Zurek have provided a unifying causal picture for the appearance
of topological defects like cosmic strings or vortices at the onset of phase
transitions in relativistic QFT and condensed matter systems respectively.
There is no direct experimental evidence in QFT, but in condensed matter the
predictions are largely, but not wholly, supported in superfluid experiments on
liquid helium. We provide an alternative picture for the initial appearance of
strings/vortices that is commensurate with all the experimental evidence from
condensed matter and consider some of its implications for QFT.Comment: 37 pages, to be published in Condensed Matter Physics, 200
Reframing the measurement of women’s work in the sub-Saharan African context
This research note considers how we measure women’s work in the sub-Saharan African (SSA) context. Drawing on qualitative work conducted in Burundi, the note examines how existing measures of women’s work do not accurately capture the intensity and type of work women in SSA undertake. Transcripts from qualitative interviews suggest that women think of work to meet their roles and responsibilities within the household. The women in the interviews do not frame work as a career or a primary activity in a time-use allocation. As a result, researchers need to nest questions regarding women’s work within surveys that ask about roles and responsibilities within the household, and about how women meet these responsibilities with a financial component.Published versionAccepted manuscrip
Finite element analysis of a fluid-structure interaction in flexible pipe line
This paper describes the basic theory and computing method for transient flow of liquid in flexible pipe such as rubber tubing and arterial system. A mathematical model taking into account tube wall axial and radial motion (in which the dynamic fluid pressure causes circumferential and axial motion of the tube wall) is presented. The tube wall is assumed to be elastic material and the compressibility of the liquid is neglected. Circumferential and axial strain-stress relationships for the tube are considered. The obtained mathematical system is constituted of four non-linear hyperbolic partial differential equations describing the wave propagation in both pipe wall and liquid flow. The fluid-structure interaction is found to be governed by Poisson’s ratio. In this steady finite element method based on Galerkin formulation is applied. Numerical results show a good similarity with those of the literature obtained by the characteristics method.Key words : Fluid-structure interaction, flexible pipe, rubber, finite element method
Slow Quenches Produce Fuzzy, Transient Vortices
We examine the Zurek scenario for the production of vortices in quenches of
liquid in the light of recent experiments. Extending our previous
results to later times, we argue that short wavelength thermal fluctuations
make vortices poorly defined until after the transition has occurred. Further,
if and when vortices appear, it is plausible that that they will decay faster
than anticipated from turbulence experiments, irrespective of quench rates.Comment: 4 pages, Revtex file, no figures Apart from a more appropriate title,
this paper differs from its predecessor by including temperature, as well as
pressure, quenche
Differential Pre-mRNA Splicing Regulates Nnat Isoforms in the Hypothalamus after Gastric Bypass Surgery in Mice
Background
Neuronatin (NNAT) is an endoplasmic reticulum proteolipid implicated in intracellular signalling. Nnat is highly-expressed in the hypothalamus, where it is acutely regulated by nutrients and leptin. Nnat pre-mRNA is differentially spliced to create Nnat-α and -β isoforms. Genetic variation of NNAT is associated with severe obesity. Currently, little is known about the long-term regulation of Nnat.
Methods
Expression of Nnat isoforms were examined in the hypothalamus of mice in response to acute fast/feed, chronic caloric restriction, diet-induced obesity and modified gastric bypass surgery. Nnat expression was assessed in the central nervous system and gastrointestinal tissues. RTqPCR was used to determine isoform-specific expression of Nnat mRNA.
Results
Hypothalamic expression of both Nnat isoforms was comparably decreased by overnight and 24-h fasting. Nnat expression was unaltered in diet-induced obesity, or subsequent switch to a calorie restricted diet. Nnat isoforms showed differential expression in the hypothalamus but not brainstem after bypass surgery. Hypothalamic Nnat-β expression was significantly reduced after bypass compared with sham surgery (P = 0.003), and was positively correlated with post-operative weight-loss (R2 = 0.38, P = 0.01). In contrast, Nnat-α expression was not suppressed after bypass surgery (P = 0.19), and expression did not correlate with reduction in weight after surgery (R2 = 0.06, P = 0.34). Hypothalamic expression of Nnat-β correlated weakly with circulating leptin, but neither isoform correlated with fasting gut hormone levels post- surgery. Nnat expression was detected in brainstem, brown-adipose tissue, stomach and small intestine.
Conclusions
Nnat expression in hypothalamus is regulated by short-term nutrient availability, but unaltered by diet-induced obesity or calorie restriction. While Nnat isoforms in the hypothalamus are co-ordinately regulated by acute nutrient supply, after modified gastric bypass surgery Nnat isoforms show differential expression. These results raise the possibility that in the radically altered nutrient and hormonal milieu created by bypass surgery, resultant differential splicing of Nnat pre-mRNA may contribute to weight-loss
Domain Formation in Finite-Time Quenches
We study the formation of domains in a continuous phase transition with a
finite-temperature quench. The model treated is the theory in two
spatial dimensions with global O(2) symmetry. We investigate this using
real-time thermal field theory, following Boyanovsky and collaborators, and
find that domain sizes appear to be smaller than those produced in an
instantaneous quench in the tree-level approximation. We also propose that a
more physical picture emerges by examining the two-point functions which do not
involve any cutoff on the short wavelength Goldstone modes.Comment: Revtex, 16 pages, 5 figures, Minor change
- …