Range Restricted Interpolation Using Cubic Bézier Triangles.

A range restricted C1 interpolation local scheme to scattered data is derived. Each macro triangle of the triangulated domain is split into three mini triangles and the interpolating surface on each mini triangle is a cubic Bézier triangle. Sufficient conditions derived for the non-negativity of these cubic Bézier triangles are expressed as lower bounds to the Bézier ordinates. The non-negativity preserving interpolation scheme extends to the construction of a range restricted interpolating surface with lower or upper constraints which are polynomial surfaces of degree up to three. The scheme is illustrated with graphical examples

Serving temperature effects on milk flavor, milk aftertaste, and volatile-compound quantification in nonfat and whole milk

Many people seem to prefer to drink milk when it is cold. Research describing flavor and aftertaste of milk, and then correlating these traits with their chemical composition, has not previously been done. The objectives of this study were to describe milk flavor and aftertaste by using a descriptive sensory panel and to quantify the headspace volatiles of nonfat and whole milk as a function of serving temperature. Headspace volatile compounds of milk samples served at 40°F and 60°F were quantified by using solid-phase microextraction (SPME) analysis, with a 75-μm Carboxen- PDMS fiber, sampling milk at 140oF for 30 minutes, and then analyzing by gas chromatography, flame ion detection (GCFID) for quantification. Descriptive-panel results indicated that serving temperature did not affect the milk flavor. Nonfat milk flavor and texture were rated to have greater sour aromatics, and to be slightly chalky, flat, and bitter, but less sweet, than whole milk. Characterization of milk aftertaste at 15 seconds after swallowing indicated that nonfat milk had very slight sour and cooked attributes. Characterization of milk aftertaste at 90 seconds after swallowing indicated that nonfat milk had very slight cooked attributes and was less sweet than whole milk. Serving temperature did not affect concentrations of volatile compounds, but nonfat milk had a greater concentration of hexanal and lesser (P \u3c 0.05) concentrations of benzaldehyde, ethyl caproate, heptanal, 2-heptanone, and nonanal than whole milk did. These data provide evidence that fat contributes to the flavor and aftertaste attributes of milk more than serving temperature does.; Dairy Day, 2004, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 2004

Brillouin-light-scattering study of long-wavelength spin waves in a single-crystal 300- gadolinium film

The temperature dependence of the energy of ferromagnetic spin waves in an epitaxially grown 300- [0001] Gd film is shown to depend on the bulk values of the c-axis magnetic-stiffness constant Dc, defined by (q)=tsumiDiqi2, where qa1, and the axial-anisotropy constant P2, defined by scrHaniso =P2 (Sz)2+.... Two bulk spin waves and one Damon-Eshbach surface magnetostatic wave were probed with Brillouin light scattering. The bulk spin waves were found to be sensitive to the exchange interaction. In contrast, the Damon-Eshbach surface magnetostatic wave, although insensitive to the exchange interaction, is influenced noticeably by the axial magnetic anisotropy P2(T) present in Gd. Ignoring surface anisotropy, we extracted values of Dc(T) and P2(T) from the Brillouin data and from the magnetization of the Gd film determined by a superconducting-quantum-interference-device magnetometer. Within the experimental errors, these values are reasonably consistent with the bulk values from the literature

Brillouin-light-scattering study of long-wavelength acoustic phonons in single-crystal dysprosium films

We have employed Brillouin scattering to investigate elastic-wave velocities as a function of temperature in Dy thin films and in bulk Dy. The single-crystal films were synthesized by molecular-beam epitaxy to ensure high crystalline and interfacial quality. Surface (Rayleigh) and guided-wave (Lamb) modes were probed by the Brillouin technique through the surface ripple-coupling mechanism. Results taken near room temperature in the paramagnetic phase agree very well with a layered-elastic model in which the materials of the samples are represented by elastic behavior using bulk single-crystal elastic data from the literature. At lower temperatures anomalies were found for samples with the thinner Dy layers: Measured wave velocities differed by up to 2% from the model predictions, and the ratio of Lamb-to-Rayleigh intensities was twice the predicted value. The anomalies coincide with the ferromagnetic transitions of the films, and they are believed to originate from coupling between the phonons and the magnetic system in the near-surface region probed by the Brillouin scattering

D-branes at multicritical points

The moduli space of c=1 conformal field theories in two dimensions has a multicritical point, where a circle theory is equivalent to an orbifold theory. We analyse all the conformal branes in both descriptions of this theory, and find convincing evidence that the full brane spectrum coincides. This shows that the equivalence of the two descriptions at this multicritical point extends to the boundary sector. We also perform the analogous analysis for one of the multicritical points of the N=1 superconformal field theories at c=3/2. Again the brane spectra are identical for both descriptions, however the identification is more subtle.Comment: 32 pages, 2 figure

Ophthalmic Complications of Dengue

A case series suggests that the spectrum of complications in dengue infection is widening

The impact of atrial fibrillation on prognosis in aortic stenosis

Background Atrial fibrillation (AF) and aortic stenosis (AS) are both highly prevalent and often coexist. Various studies have focused on the prognostic value of AF in patients with AS, but rarely considered left ventricular (LV) diastolic function as a prognostic factor. Objective To evaluate the prognostic impact of AF in patients with AS while correcting for LV diastolic function. Methods Patients with first diagnosis of significant AS were selected and stratified according to history of AF. The endpoint was all-cause mortality. Results In total, 2849 patients with significant AS (mean age 72 +/- 12 years, 54.8% men) were evaluated, and 686 (24.1%) had a history of AF. During a median follow-up of 60 (30-97) months, 1182 (41.5%) patients died. Ten-year mortality rate in patients with AF was 46.8% compared to 36.8% in patients with sinus rhythm (SR) (log-rank P < 0.001). On univariable (HR: 1.42; 95% CI: 1.25-1.62; P < 0.001) and multivariable Cox regression analysis (HR: 1.19; 95% CI: 1.02-1.38; P = 0.026), AF was independently associated with mortality. However, when correcting for indexed left atrial volume, E/e' or both, AF was no longer independently associated with all-cause mortality. Conclusion Patients with significant AS and AF have a reduced survival as compared to patients with SR. Nonetheless, when correcting for markers of LV diastolic function, AF was not independently associated with outcomes in patients with significant AS.Cardiolog

Global Search for New Physics with 2.0/fb at CDF

Data collected in Run II of the Fermilab Tevatron are searched for indications of new electroweak-scale physics. Rather than focusing on particular new physics scenarios, CDF data are analyzed for discrepancies with the standard model prediction. A model-independent approach (Vista) considers gross features of the data, and is sensitive to new large cross-section physics. Further sensitivity to new physics is provided by two additional algorithms: a Bump Hunter searches invariant mass distributions for "bumps" that could indicate resonant production of new particles; and the Sleuth procedure scans for data excesses at large summed transverse momentum. This combined global search for new physics in 2.0/fb of ppbar collisions at sqrt(s)=1.96 TeV reveals no indication of physics beyond the standard model.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures. Final version which appeared in Physical Review D Rapid Communication

Observation of Orbitally Excited B_s Mesons

We report the first observation of two narrow resonances consistent with states of orbitally excited (L=1) B_s mesons using 1 fb^{-1} of ppbar collisions at sqrt{s} = 1.96 TeV collected with the CDF II detector at the Fermilab Tevatron. We use two-body decays into K^- and B^+ mesons reconstructed as B^+ \to J/\psi K^+, J/\psi \to \mu^+ \mu^- or B^+ \to \bar{D}^0 \pi^+, \bar{D}^0 \to K^+ \pi^-. We deduce the masses of the two states to be m(B_{s1}) = 5829.4 +- 0.7 MeV/c^2 and m(B_{s2}^*) = 5839.7 +- 0.7 MeV/c^2.Comment: Version accepted and published by Phys. Rev. Let

Shrinking a large dataset to identify variables associated with increased risk of Plasmodium falciparum infection in Western Kenya

Large datasets are often not amenable to analysis using traditional single-step approaches. Here, our general objective was to apply imputation techniques, principal component analysis (PCA), elastic net and generalized linear models to a large dataset in a systematic approach to extract the most meaningful predictors for a health outcome. We extracted predictors for Plasmodium falciparum infection, from a large covariate dataset while facing limited numbers of observations, using data from the People, Animals, and their Zoonoses (PAZ) project to demonstrate these techniques: data collected from 415 homesteads in western Kenya, contained over 1500 variables that describe the health, environment, and social factors of the humans, livestock, and the homesteads in which they reside. The wide, sparse dataset was simplified to 42 predictors of P. falciparum malaria infection and wealth rankings were produced for all homesteads. The 42 predictors make biological sense and are supported by previous studies. This systematic data-mining approach we used would make many large datasets more manageable and informative for decision-making processes and health policy prioritization