8,827 research outputs found
Interacting Brownian motions in infinite dimensions with logarithmic interaction potentials
We investigate the construction of diffusions consisting of infinitely
numerous Brownian particles moving in and interacting via
logarithmic functions (two-dimensional Coulomb potentials). These potentials
are very strong and act over a long range in nature. The associated equilibrium
states are no longer Gibbs measures. We present general results for the
construction of such diffusions and, as applications thereof, construct two
typical interacting Brownian motions with logarithmic interaction potentials,
namely the Dyson model in infinite dimensions and Ginibre interacting Brownian
motions. The former is a particle system in , while the latter is
in . Both models are translation and rotation invariant in space,
and as such, are prototypes of dimensions , respectively. The
equilibrium states of the former diffusion model are determinantal or Pfaffian
random point fields with sine kernels. They appear in the thermodynamical
limits of the spectrum of the ensembles of Gaussian random matrices such as
GOE, GUE and GSE. The equilibrium states of the latter diffusion model are the
thermodynamical limits of the spectrum of the ensemble of complex non-Hermitian
Gaussian random matrices known as the Ginibre ensemble.Comment: Published in at http://dx.doi.org/10.1214/11-AOP736 the Annals of
Probability (http://www.imstat.org/aop/) by the Institute of Mathematical
Statistics (http://www.imstat.org
Management of Kawasaki disease
Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute self-limiting inflammatory disorder, associated with vasculitis, affecting predominantly medium-sized arteries, particularly the coronary arteries. In developed countries KD is the commonest cause of acquired heart disease in childhood. The aetiology of KD remains unknown, and it is currently believed that one or more as yet unidentified infectious agents induce an intense inflammatory host response in genetically susceptible individuals. Genetic studies have identified several susceptibility genes for KD and its sequelae in different ethnic populations, including FCGR2A, CD40, ITPKC, FAM167A-BLK and CASP3, as well as genes influencing response to intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) and aneurysm formation such as FCGR3B, and transforming growth factor (TGF) β pathway genes. IVIG and aspirin are effective therapeutically, but recent clinical trials and meta-analyses have demonstrated that the addition of corticosteroids to IVIG is beneficial for the prevention of coronary artery aneurysms (CAA) in severe cases with highest risk of IVIG resistance. Outside of Japan, however, clinical scores to predict IVIG resistance perform suboptimally. Furthermore, the evidence base does not provide clear guidance on which corticosteroid regimen is most effective. Other therapies, including anti-TNFα, could also have a role for IVIG-resistant KD. Irrespective of these caveats, it is clear that therapy that reduces inflammation in acute KD, improves outcome. This paper summarises recent advances in the understanding of KD pathogenesis and therapeutics, and provides an approach for managing KD patients in the UK in the light of these advances
Has HERA reached a new QCD regime?
These notes are a summary of our efforts to answer the question in the title.
Our answer is in the affirmative as: (i) HERA data indicate a large value of
the gluon structure function; (ii) no contradictions with the asymptotic
predictions of high density QCD have been observed; and (iii) the numerical
estimates of our model give a natural description of the size of deviation from
the routine DGLAP explanation. We discuss the alternative approaches and
possible new experiments.Comment: 29 pages, 37 figures in eps file
On the nature of long-range contributions to pair interactions between charged colloids in two dimensions
We perform a detailed analysis of solutions of the inverse problem applied to
experimentally measured two-dimensional radial distribution functions for
highly charged latex dispersions. The experiments are carried out at high
colloidal densities and under low-salt conditions. At the highest studied
densities, the extracted effective pair potentials contain long-range
attractive part. At the same time, we find that for the best distribution
functions available the range of stability of the solutions is limited by the
nearest neighbour distance between the colloidal particles. Moreover, the
measured pair distribution functions can be explained by purely repulsive pair
potentials contained in the stable part of the solution.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure
Stable isotopic composition of fossil mammal teeth and environmental change in southwestern South Africa during the Pliocene and Pleistocene
The past 5 million years mark a global change from the warmer, more stable climate of the Pliocene to the initiation of glacial-interglacial cycles during the Pleistocene. Marine core sediment records located off the coast of southwestern Africa indicate aridification and intensified upwelling in the Benguela Current over the Pliocene and Pleistocene. However, few terrestrial records document environmental change in southwestern Africa over this time interval. Here we synthesize new and published carbon and oxygen isotope data of the teeth from large mammals (>6 kg) at Langebaanweg (~5 million years ago, Ma), Elandsfontein (1.0 – 0.6 Ma), and Hoedjiespunt (0.35 – 0.20 Ma), to evaluate environmental change in southwestern Africa between the Pliocene and Pleistocene. The majority of browsing and grazing herbivores from these sites yield enamel 13 C values within the range expected for animals with a pure C3 diet, however some taxa have enamel 13C values that suggest the presence of small amounts C4 grasses at times during the Pleistocene. Considering that significant amounts of C4 grasses require a warm growing season, these results indicate that the winter rainfall zone, characteristic of the region today, could have been in place for the past 5 million years. The average 18O value of the herbivore teeth increases ~4.4‰ between Langebaanweg and Elandsfontein for all taxa except suids. This increase may solely be a function of a change in hydrology between the fluvial system at Langebaanweg and the spring-fed environments at Elandsfontein, or a combination of factors that include depositional context, regional circulation and global climate. However, an increase in regional aridity or global cooling between the early Pliocene and mid-Pleistocene cannot explain the entire increase in enamel 18O values. Spring-fed environments like those at Elandsfontein may have 75 provided critical resources for mammalian fauna in the mid-Pleistocene within an increasingly arid southwestern Africa ecosystem
Weak gauge principle and electric charge quantization
Starting from a weak gauge principle we give a new and critical revision of
the argument leading to charge quantization on arbitrary spacetimes. The main
differences of our approach with respect to previous works appear on spacetimes
with non trivial torsion elements on its second integral cohomology group. We
show that in these spacetimes there can be topologically non-trivial
configurations of charged fields which do not imply charge quantization.
However, the existence of a non-exact electromagnetic field always implies the
quantization of charges. Another consequence of the theory for spacetimes with
torsion is the fact that it gives rise to two natural quantization units that
could be identified with the electric quantization unit (realized inside the
quarks) and with the electron charge. In this framework the color charge can
have a topological origin, with the number of colors being related to the order
of the torsion subgroup. Finally, we discuss the possibility that the
quantization of charge may be due to a weak non-exact component of the
electromagnetic field extended over cosmological scales.Comment: Latex2e, 24 pages, no figure
Pseudogap effects induced by resonant pair scattering
We demonstrate how resonant pair scattering of correlated electrons above T_c
can give rise to pseudogap behavior. This resonance in the scattering T-matrix
appears for superconducting interactions of intermediate strength, within the
framework of a simple fermionic model. It is associated with a splitting of the
single peak in the spectral function into a pair of peaks separated by an
energy gap. Our physical picture is contrasted with that derived from other
T-matrix schemes, with superconducting fluctuation effects, and with preformed
pair (boson-fermion) models. Implications for photoemission and tunneling
experiments in the cuprates are discussed.Comment: REVTeX3.0; 4 pages, 4 EPS figures (included
Postnatal DNA demethylation and its role in tissue maturation.
Development in mammals is accompanied by specific de novo and demethylation events that are thought to stabilize differentiated cell phenotypes. We demonstrate that a large percentage of the tissue-specific methylation pattern is generated postnatally. Demethylation in the liver is observed in thousands of enhancer-like sequences associated with genes that undergo activation during the first few weeks of life. Using. conditional gene ablation strategy we show that the removal of these methyl groups is stable and necessary for assuring proper hepatocyte gene expression and function through its effect on chromatin accessibility. These postnatal changes in methylation come about through exposure to hormone signaling. These results define the molecular rules of 5-methyl-cytosine regulation as an epigenetic mechanism underlying cellular responses to. changing environment
Algorithms for Cut Problems on Trees
We study the {\sc multicut on trees} and the {\sc generalized multiway Cut on
trees} problems. For the {\sc multicut on trees} problem, we present a
parameterized algorithm that runs in time , where is the positive root of the polynomial
. This improves the current-best algorithm of Chen et al. that runs
in time . For the {\sc generalized multiway cut on trees}
problem, we show that this problem is solvable in polynomial time if the number
of terminal sets is fixed; this answers an open question posed in a recent
paper by Liu and Zhang. By reducing the {\sc generalized multiway cut on trees}
problem to the {\sc multicut on trees} problem, our results give a
parameterized algorithm that solves the {\sc generalized multiway cut on trees}
problem in time , where time
Protostellar Disks: Formation, Fragmentation, and the Brown Dwarf Desert
We argue that gravitational instability of typical protostellar disks is not
a viable mechanism for the fragmentation into multiple systems -- binary stars,
brown dwarf companions, or gas giant planets -- except at periods above roughly
20,000 years. Our conclusion is based on a comparison between prior numerical
work on disk self-gravity by Gammie (2001) with our own analytical models for
the dynamical and thermal state of protostellar disks. For this purpose we
first develop a simple theory for the initial conditions of low-mass star
formation, accounting for the effect of turbulence on the characteristic mass,
accretion rate, and angular momentum of collaping cores. Second, we examine the
criterion for fragmentation to occur during star formation, concentrating on
the self-gravitational instabilities of protostellar accretion disks in their
main accretion phase. Self-gravitational instabilities are strongly dependent
on the thermal state of the disk, and we find that the combination of viscous
heating and stellar irradiation quenches fragmentation due to Toomre's local
instability. Global instability of the disk may be required to process mass
supply, but is unlikely to produce fragments. Our findings help to explain the
dearth of substellar companions to stellar type stars: the brown dwarf desert.Comment: 22 pages, 2 figures, accepted by ApJ. Improved discussions of the
criterion for local fragmentation and of the effects of stellar radiation;
expanded comparisons to numerical simulations and to observation
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