564 research outputs found
On Kaluza's sign criterion for reciprocal power series
T. Kaluza has given a criterion for the signs of the power series of a
function that is the reciprocal of another power series. In this note the
sharpness of this condition is explored and various examples in terms of the
Gaussian hypergeometric series are given. A criterion for the monotonicity of
the quotient of two power series due to M. Biernacki and J. Krzy\.z is applied.Comment: 13 page
Economic factors influencing zoonotic disease dynamics: demand for poultry meat and seasonal transmission of avian influenza in Vietnam
While climate is often presented as a key factor influencing the seasonality of diseases, the importance of anthropogenic factors is less commonly evaluated. Using a combination of methods-wavelet analysis, economic analysis, statistical and disease transmission modelling-we aimed to explore the influence of climatic and economic factors on the seasonality of H5N1 Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in the domestic poultry population of Vietnam. We found that while climatic variables are associated with seasonal variation in the incidence of avian influenza outbreaks in the North of the country, this is not the case in the Centre and the South. In contrast, temporal patterns of H5N1 incidence are similar across these 3 regions: periods of high H5N1 incidence coincide with Lunar New Year festival, occurring in January-February, in the 3 climatic regions for 5 out of the 8 study years. Yet, daily poultry meat consumption drastically increases during Lunar New Year festival throughout the country. To meet this rise in demand, poultry production and trade are expected to peak around the festival period, promoting viral spread, which we demonstrated using a stochastic disease transmission model. This study illustrates the way in which economic factors may influence the dynamics of livestock pathogens
Temperature dependent surface relaxations of Ag(111)
The temperature dependent surface relaxation of Ag(111) is calculated by
density-functional theory. At a given temperature, the equilibrium geometry is
determined by minimizing the Helmholtz free energy within the quasiharmonic
approximation. To this end, phonon dispersions all over the Brillouin zone are
determined from density-functional perturbation theory. We find that the
top-layer relaxation of Ag(111) changes from an inward contraction (-0.8 %) to
an outward expansion (+6.3%) as the temperature increases from T=0 K to 1150 K,
in agreement with experimental findings. Also the calculated surface phonon
dispersion curves at room temperature are in good agreement with helium
scattering measurements. The mechanism driving this surface expansion is
analyzed.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. B (May 1998). Other
related publications can be found at
http://www.rz-berlin.mpg.de/th/paper.htm
Surface relaxation and ferromagnetism of Rh(001)
The significant discrepancy between first-principles calculations and
experimental analyses for the relaxation of the (001) surface of rhodium has
been a puzzle for some years. In this paper we present density functional
theory calculations using the local-density approximation and the generalized
gradient approximation of the exchange-correlation functional. We investigate
the thermal expansion of the surface and the possibility of surface magnetism.
The results throw light on several, hitherto overlooked, aspects of metal
surfaces. We find, that, when the free energy is considered, density-functional
theory provides results in good agreement with experiments.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Lett. (April 28, 1996
Engineering single-atom Fe-N active sites on hollow carbon spheres for oxygen reduction reaction
Seeking alternatives to noble metals-based electrocatalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), hollow carbon spheres (CSs) were finely tuned with stable single-atom Fe-N species through a synthesis methodology requiring only earth-abundant metal precursors. CSs with different sizes were synthesized by sol-gel polycondensation of resorcinol with formaldehyde over silica nanoparticles, followed by thermal annealing and silica etching. A catalyst screening revealed the positive impact of both the hollow core and structural defects of the CSs for ORR. Single-atom Fe-N active sites were introduced on the best performing CSs through simultaneous incorporation of iron and nitrogen precursors, and glucose. A significant enhancement in ORR activity was observed despite the small iron load introduced (0.12 wt%). ORR performance indicators, advanced characterization, and molecular simulation studies revealed nitrogen's crucial role in anchoring individual iron atoms and modulating the charge density nearby the active sites (increase of 80 mV in the half-wave potential). Adding glucose as a chelating agent enhances the metal-heteroatom coordination and subsequent dispersion of iron, accounting for an increase of 20 mV in the half-wave potential, an average of electrons transferred as high as 3.9 (at 0.4 V vs. RHE), and higher stability (99%) than that of a platinum-based (20 wt%) electrocatalyst (92%).11 página
First-principles calculation of the thermal properties of silver
The thermal properties of silver are calculated within the quasi-harmonic
approximation, by using phonon dispersions from density-functional perturbation
theory, and the pseudopotential plane-wave method. The resulting free energy
provides predictions for the temperature dependence of various quantities such
as the equilibrium lattice parameter, the bulk modulus, and the heat capacity.
Our results for the thermal properties are in good agreement with available
experimental data in a wide range of temperatures. As a by-product, we
calculate phonon frequency and Grueneisen parameter dispersion curves which are
also in good agreement with experiment.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. B April 30, 1998). Other
related publications can be found at
http://www.rz-berlin.mpg.de/th/paper.htm
Ab initio study of the volume dependence of dynamical and thermodynamical properties of silicon
Motivated by the negative thermal expansion observed for silicon between 20 K
and 120 K, we present first an ab initio study of the volume dependence of
interatomic force constants, phonon frequencies of TA(X) and TA(L) modes, and
of the associated mode Gruneisen parameters. The influence of successive
nearest neighbors shells is analysed. Analytical formulas, taking into account
interactions up to second nearest neighbors, are developped for phonon
frequencies of TA(X) and TA(L) modes and the corresponding mode Gruneisen
parameters. We also analyze the volume and pressure dependence of various
thermodynamic properties (specific heat, bulk modulus, thermal expansion), and
point out the effect of the negative mode Gruneisen parameters of the acoustic
branches on these properties. Finally, we present the evolution of the mean
square atomic displacement and of the atomic temperature factor with the
temperature for different volumes, for which the anomalous effects are even
greater.Comment: 24 pages, Revtex 3.0, 11 figures, accepted for publication in Phys.
Rev.
A cross-national study on the antecedents of work–life balance from the fit and balance perspective
Drawing on the perceived work–family fit and balance perspective, this study investigates demands and resources as antecedents of work–life balance (WLB) across four countries (New Zealand, France, Italy and Spain), so as to provide empirical cross-national evidence. Using structural equation modelling analysis on a sample of 870 full time employees, we found that work demands, hours worked and family demands were negatively related to WLB, while job autonomy and supervisor support were positively related to WLB. We also found evidence that resources (job autonomy and supervisor support) moderated the relationships between demands and work–life balance, with high resources consistently buffering any detrimental influence of demands on WLB. Furthermore, our study identified additional predictors of WLB that were unique to some national contexts. For example, in France and Italy, overtime hours worked were negatively associated with WLB, while parental status was positively associated with WLB. Overall, the implications for theory and practice are discussed.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft
“<i>I do it because they do it</i>”:social-neutralisation in information security practices of Saudi medical interns
Successful implementation of information security policies (ISP) and IT controls play an important role in safeguarding patient privacy in healthcare organizations. Our study investigates the factors that lead to healthcare practitioners' neutralisation of ISPs, leading to non-compliance. The study adopted a qualitative approach and conducted a series of semi-structured interviews with medical interns and hospital IT department managers and staff in an academic hospital in Saudi Arabia. The study's findings revealed that the MIs imitate their peers' actions and employ similar justifications when violating ISP dictates. Moreover, MI team superiors' (seniors) ISP non-compliance influence MIs tendency to invoke neutralisation techniques. We found that the trust between the medical team members is an essential social facilitator that motivates MIs to invoke neutralisation techniques to justify violating ISP policies and controls. These findings add new insights that help us to understand the relationship between the social context and neutralisation theory in triggering ISP non-compliance
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