Hall viscosity in the non-Abelian quantum Hall matrix model

Quantum Hall matrix models are simple, solvable quantum mechanical systems which capture the physics of certain fractional quantum Hall states. Recently, it was shown that the Hall viscosity can be extracted from the matrix model for Laughlin states. Here we extend this calculation to the matrix models for a class of non-Abelian quantum Hall states. These states, which were previously introduced by Blok and Wen, arise from the conformal blocks of Wess-Zumino-Witten conformal field theory models. We show that the Hall viscosity computed from the matrix model coincides with a result of Read, in which the Hall viscosity is determined in terms of the weights of primary operators of an associated conformal field theory

SCALE ANALYSIS OF DECAY HEAT REMOVAL SYSTEM BETWEEN HTR-10 AND HTR-PM REACTORS UNDER ACCIDENTAL CONDITIONS

The 10 MW high-temperature gas-cooled test module (HTR-10) is a graphite-moderated and helium-cooled pebble bed reactor prototype that was designed to demonstrate the technical and safety feasibility of this type of reactor project under normal and accidental conditions. In addition, one of the systems responsible for ensuring the safe operation of this type of reactor is the passive decay heat removal system (DHRS), which operates using passive heat removal processes. A demonstration of the heat removal capacity of the DHRS under accidental conditions was analyzed based on a benchmark problem for design-based accidents on an HTR-10, i.e., the pressurized loss of forced cooling (PLOFC) described in technical reports produced by the International Atomic Energy Agency. In fact, the HTR-10 is also a proof-of-concept reactor for the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor pebble-bed module (HTR-PM), which generates approximately 25 times more heat than the HTR-10, with a thermal power of 250 MW, thereby requiring a DHRS with a higher system capacity. Thus, because an HTR-10 is a prototype reactor for an HTR-PM, a scaling analysis of the heat transfer process from the reactor to the DHRS was carried out between the HTR-10 and HTR-PM systems to verify the distortions of scale and the differences between the main dimensionless numbers from the two project

The Use of Both Therapeutic and Prophylactic Vaccines in the Therapy of Papillomavirus Disease

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted virus. The high-risk HPV types (i.e., HPV16, 18, 31, 33, 35, 39, 45, 51, 52, 56, 58, 59) are considered to be the main etiological agents of genital tract cancers, such as cervical, vulvar, vaginal, penile, and anal cancers, and of a subset of head and neck cancers. Three prophylactic HPV vaccines are available that are bivalent (vs. HPV16, 18), tetravalent (vs. HPV6, 11, 16, 18), and non-avalent (vs. HPV6, 11, 16, 18, 31, 33,45, 52, 58). All of these vaccines are based on recombinant DNA technology, and they are prepared from the purified L1 protein that self-assembles to form the HPV type-specific empty shells (i.e., virus-like particles). These vaccines are highly immunogenic and induce specific antibodies. Therapeutic vaccines differ from prophylactic vaccines, as they are designed to generate cell-mediated immunity against transformed cells, rather than neutralizing antibodies. Among the HPV proteins, the E6 and E7 oncoproteins are considered almost ideal as targets for immunotherapy of cervical cancer, as they are essential for the onset and evolution of malignancy and are constitutively expressed in both premalignant and invasive lesions. Several strategies have been investigated for HPV therapeutic vaccines designed to enhance CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell responses, including genetic vaccines (i.e., DNA/ RNA/virus/ bacterial), and protein-based, peptide-based or dendritic-cell-based vaccines. However, no vaccine has yet been licensed for therapeutic use. Several studies have suggested that administration of prophylactic vaccines immediately after surgical treatment of CIN2 cervical lesions can be considered as an adjuvant to prevent reactivation or reinfection, and other studies have described the relevance of prophylactic vaccines in the management of genital warts. This review summarizes the leading features of therapeutic vaccines, which mainly target the early oncoproteins E6 and E7, and prophylactic vaccines, which are based on the L1 capsid protein. Through an analysis of the specific immunogenic properties of these two types of vaccines, we discuss why and how prophylactic vaccines can be effective in the treatment of HPV-related lesions and relapse

Cyclotron resonant scattering feature simulations. I. Thermally averaged cyclotron scattering cross sections, mean free photon-path tables, and electron momentum sampling

Electron cyclotron resonant scattering features (CRSFs) are observed as absorption-like lines in the spectra of X-ray pulsars. A significant fraction of the computing time for Monte Carlo simulations of these quantum mechanical features is spent on the calculation of the mean free path for each individual photon before scattering, since it involves a complex numerical integration over the scattering cross section and the (thermal) velocity distribution of the scattering electrons. We aim to numerically calculate interpolation tables which can be used in CRSF simulations to sample the mean free path of the scattering photon and the momentum of the scattering electron. The tables also contain all the information required for sampling the scattering electron's final spin. The tables were calculated using an adaptive Simpson integration scheme. The energy and angle grids were refined until a prescribed accuracy is reached. The tables are used by our simulation code to produce artificial CRSF spectra. The electron momenta sampled during these simulations were analyzed and justified using theoretically determined boundaries. We present a complete set of tables suited for mean free path calculations of Monte Carlo simulations of the cyclotron scattering process for conditions expected in typical X-ray pulsar accretion columns (0.01<B/B_{crit}<=0.12, where B_{crit}=4.413x10^{13} G and 3keV<=kT<15keV). The sampling of the tables is chosen such that the results have an estimated relative error of at most 1/15 for all points in the grid. The tables are available online at http://www.sternwarte.uni-erlangen.de/research/cyclo.Comment: A&A, in pres

A proposal to modernize and harmonize maritime curricula in Montenegro and Albania

The Black Sea region, a large horizon ready to open, ready to explore, ready to show her energy, her power and opportunities. But how we are preparing for this? It is a high competition between all the &ldquo;actors&rdquo; implicated in this field. The industry was informed to this potential resources by a major study undertaken by Purvin and Gertz in 2011, which predicted the development of a Romanian offshore industry and now exist many recently studies that confirmed the &ldquo;black resources&rdquo; of the Black Sea. We all know about the emergence of shale gas in Europe, in the last years, because is increasing evidence of a more united approach on energy, so the exploration and development of gas reserves in the Black Sea is an optimal alternative to supply gas from the Caspian to south-eastern Europe. But this good alternative implicates problems generated by costs, transportation and security of the very long pipelines that will pass through several countries till reaching their final destination. I try in this paper to pay attention on the main objective in the Black Sea Region, in this offshore field, that required the cooperation and sustainability from part of European Union and all its members&rsquo; state and countries situated in the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea or Caspian Sea

Human Papillomavirus infections in cervical samples from HIV-positive women: evaluation of the presence of the nonavalent HPV genotypes and genetic diversity

Non-nonavalent vaccine (9v) Human papillomavirus (HPV) types have been shown to have high prevalence among HIV-positive women. Here, 1444 cervical samples were tested for HPV DNA positivity. Co-infections of the 9v HPV types with other HPV types were evaluated. The HPV81 L1 and L2 genes were used to investigate the genetic variability of antigenic epitopes. HPV-positive samples were genotyped using the HPVCLART2 assay. The L1 and L2 protein sequences were analyzed using a self-optimized prediction method to predict their secondary structure. Co-occurrence probabilities of the 9v HPV types were calculated. Non9v types represented 49% of the HPV infections; 31.2% of the non9v HPV types were among the low-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion samples, and 27.3% among the high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion samples, and several genotypes were low risk. The co-occurrence of 9v HPV types with the other genotypes was not correlated with the filogenetic distance. HPV81 showed an amino-acid substitution within the BC loop (N75Q) and the FGb loop (T315N). In the L2 protein, all of the mutations were located outside antigenic sites. The weak cross-protection of the 9v types suggests the relevance of a sustainable and effective screening program, which should be implemented by HPV DNA testing that does not include only high-risk types

Co-firing of biomass and other wastes in fluidised bed systems

A project on co-firing in large-scale power plants burning coal is currently funded by the European Commission. It is called COPOWER. The project involves 10 organisations from 6 countries. The project involves combustion studies over the full spectrum of equipment size, ranging from small laboratory-scale reactors and pilot plants, to investigate fundamentals and operating parameters, to proving trials on a commercial power plant in Duisburg. The power plant uses a circulating fluidized bed boiler. The results to be obtained are to be compared as function of scale-up. There are two different coals, 3 types of biomass and 2 kinds of waste materials are to be used for blending with coal for co-firing tests. The baseline values are obtained during a campaign of one month at the power station and the results are used for comparison with those to be obtained in other units of various sizes. Future tests will be implemented with the objective to achieve improvement on baseline values. The fuels to be used are already characterized. There are ongoing studies to determine reactivities of fuels and chars produced from the fuels. Reactivities are determined not only for individual fuels but also for blends to be used. Presently pilot-scale combustion tests are also undertaken to study the effect of blending coal with different types of biomass and waste materials. The potential for synergy to improve combustion is investigated. Early results will be reported in the Conference. Simultaneously, studies to verify the availability of biomass and waste materials in Portugal, Turkey and Italy have been undertaken. Techno-economic barriers for the future use of biomass and other waste materials are identified. The potential of using these materials in coal fired power stations has been assessed. The conclusions will also be reported

Evidences for lipid involvement in SARS-CoV-2 cytopathogenesis

The pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 remains to be completely understood, and detailed SARS-CoV-2 cellular cytopathic effects requires definition. We performed a comparative ultrastructural study of SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2 infection in Vero E6 cells and in lungs from deceased COVID-19 patients. SARS-CoV-2 induces rapid death associated with profound ultrastructural changes in Vero cells. Type II pneumocytes in lung tissue showed prominent altered features with numerous vacuoles and swollen mitochondria with presence of abundant lipid droplets. The accumulation of lipids was the most striking finding we observed in SARS-CoV-2 infected cells, both in vitro and in the lungs of patients, suggesting that lipids can be involved in SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis. Considering that in most cases, COVID-19 patients show alteration of blood cholesterol and lipoprotein homeostasis, our findings highlight a peculiar important topic that can suggest new approaches for pharmacological treatment to contrast the pathogenicity of SARS-CoV-2

Removal of Paracetamol and Cu2+ from Water by Using Porous Carbons Derived from Agrowastes

Publisher Copyright: © 2023 by the authors.Dende and babassu coconuts are largely used in tropical countries, namely in Brazil, for the extraction of oils from kernels. The remaining biowastes are industrially processed to produce porous carbons (PCs). PCs derived from dende and babassu biowastes and produced at an industrial scale have been characterized by textural, chemical, and ecotoxicological parameters. A commercial activated carbon (CC) of mineral origin has been used as a benchmarking material. Although the CC sample presented a higher surface area (SBET = 1083 m2/g), the PCs derived from the biowastes were richer in micropores (Vmicro = 0.25–0.26 cm3/g), while the CC carbon presented wider pore size distribution with a higher mesopore volume (Vmeso = 0.41 cm3/g). All the adsorbents used in this work have shown a non-acute ecotoxic behavior for the bacterium Vibrio fischeri (EC50-30 min > 99% v/v). The adsorbents have been tested for paracetamol and Cu2+ adsorption in mono- and bicomponent solutions. The uptake capacities of paracetamol (qe, 98–123 mg g−1) and Cu2+ (qe, 15–18 mg g−1) from monocomponent solutions were similar to the ones obtained in the bicomponent solutions, indicating no competition or cooperative effects but a site-specific adsorption. This finding represents an advantage for the removal of these adsorbates when present in the same solution as they can be adsorbed under similar rates as in the single systems. Paracetamol adsorption was related to micropore filling, π-π interactions, and H-bonding, whereas Cu2+ removal was attributed to the cation exchange mechanism and complexation to the hydroxyl groups at the carbons’ surface.publishersversionpublishe

Joaquim Rodrigo’s Painting : A Particularity in the Portuguese Case

Capítulo da obra "RETHINKING EUROPE: ARTISTIC PRODUCTION AND DISCOURSES OF ART IN THE LATE 1940S AND 1950S.", que resultou da conferência ocorrida em 2018.In the postwar period, Portuguese art faced a politically-imposed isolation that prevented emerging artists from engaging and interacting with the rest of Europe. For these artisits, other geographical, cultural contexts were no more than remote possibilities of exchange: sometimes mythical places of an avant-garde known through magazine articles, sometimes places they had briefly visited in search of a more direct link with their time. Portugal lived in an established dictatorship known as Estado Novo (New State) that lasted until 1974. The regime's anti-modernism sought to eliminate all modern artistic practices in an attempt to preserve its traditional cultural values, strongly dominated by the government's fascist ideology. The absence of structures for the production, exhibition, and reception of modern art during the twentieth century contributed towards the lessening of modern pratices in the national context, hindering the development of knowledge updated by artists, critics, and audiences. In spite of these setbacks, overall Portuguese artists succeded in overcoming this aloofness to which the regime condemned them. Over time, these artists managed to find ways to a distant modernity - which had become predominant in the process of reconstructing a new world in the postwar period in Wetern Europe. [com o apoio à tradução da Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia - FCT]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio