1,591 research outputs found
Centaurus A as the Source of ultra-high energy cosmic rays?
We present numerical simulations for energy spectra and angular distributions
of nucleons above 10^{19} eV injected by the radio-galaxy Centaurus A at a
distance 3.4 Mpc and propagating in extra-galactic magnetic fields in the
sub-micro Gauss range. We show that field strengths B~0.3 micro Gauss, as
proposed by Farrar and Piran, cannot provide sufficient angular deflection to
explain the observational data. A magnetic field of intensity ~1 micro Gauss
could reproduce the observed large-scale isotropy and could marginally explain
the observed energy spectrum. However, it would not readily account for the
E=320 plusminus 93 EeV Fly's Eye event that was detected at an angle 136
degrees away from Cen-A. Such a strong magnetic field also saturates
observational upper limits from Faraday rotation observations and X-ray
bremsstrahlung emission from the ambient gas (assuming equipartition of
energy). This scenario may already be tested by improving magnetic field limits
with existing instruments. We also show that high energy cosmic ray experiments
now under construction will be able to detect the level of anisotropy predicted
by this scenario. We conclude that for magnetic fields B~0.1-0.5 micro Gauss,
considered as more reasonable for the local Supercluster environment, in all
likelihood at least a few sources within ~10 Mpc from the Earth should
contribute to the observed ultra high energy cosmic ray flux.Comment: 7 latex pages, 7 postscript figures included; for related numerical
simulations see also http://www.iap.fr/users/sigl/r2e.htm
Statistics of energy levels and zero temperature dynamics for deterministic spin models with glassy behaviour
We consider the zero-temperature dynamics for the infinite-range, non
translation invariant one-dimensional spin model introduced by Marinari, Parisi
and Ritort to generate glassy behaviour out of a deterministic interaction. It
is shown that there can be a large number of metatastable (i.e., one-flip
stable) states with very small overlap with the ground state but very close in
energy to it, and that their total number increases exponentially with the size
of the system.Comment: 25 pages, 8 figure
STZ-diabetic rat heart maintains developed tension amplitude by increasing sarcomere length and crossbridge density
New Findings: What is the central question of this study? In the papillary muscle from type I diabetic rats, does diabetes-associated altered ventricular function result from changes of acto-myosin interactions and are these modifications attributable to a possible sarcomere rearrangement? What is the main finding and its importance? For the first time, we showed that type-I diabetes altered sarcomeric ultrastructure, as seen by transmission electron microscopy, consistent with physiological parameters. The diabetic condition induced slower timing parameters, which is compatible with a diastolic dysfunction. At the sarcomeric level, augmented β-myosin heavy chain content and increased sarcomere length and crossbridges' number preserve myocardial stroke and could concur to maintain the ejection fraction. Abstract: We investigated whether diabetes-associated altered ventricular function, in a type I diabetes animal model, results from a modification of acto-myosin interactions, through the in vitro recording of left papillary muscle mechanical parameters and examination of sarcomere morphology by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Experiments were performed on streptozotocin-induced diabetic and age-matched control female Wistar rats. Mechanical isometric and isotonic indexes and timing parameters were determined. Using Huxley's equations, we calculated mechanics, kinetics and energetics of myosin crossbridges. Sarcomere length and A-band length were measured on TEM images. Type I and III collagen and β-myosin heavy chain (MHC) expression were determined by immunoblotting. No variation in resting and developed tension or maximum extent of shortening was evident between groups, but diabetic rats showed lower maximum shortening velocity and prolonged timing parameters. Compared to controls, diabetics also displayed a higher number of crossbridges with lower unitary force. Moreover, no change in type I and III collagen was associated to diabetes, but pathological rats showed a two-fold enhancement of β-MHC content and longer sarcomeres and A-band, detected by ultrastructural morphometry. Overall, these data address whether a preserved systolic function accompanied by an altered diastolic phase results from a recruitment of super-relaxed myosin heads or the phosphorylation of the regulatory light chain site in myosin. Although the early signs of diabetic cardiomyopathy were well expressed, the striking finding of our study was that, in diabetics, sarcomere modification may be a possible compensatory mechanism that preserves systolic function
Bose Einstein condensation on inhomogeneous amenable graphs
We investigate the Bose-Einstein Condensation on nonhomogeneous amenable
networks for the model describing arrays of Josephson junctions. The resulting
topological model, whose Hamiltonian is the pure hopping one given by the
opposite of the adjacency operator, has also a mathematical interest in itself.
We show that for the nonhomogeneous networks like the comb graphs, particles
condensate in momentum and configuration space as well. In this case different
properties of the network, of geometric and probabilistic nature, such as the
volume growth, the shape of the ground state, and the transience, all play a
role in the condensation phenomena. The situation is quite different for
homogeneous networks where just one of these parameters, e.g. the volume
growth, is enough to determine the appearance of the condensation.Comment: 43 pages, 12 figures, final versio
Power Corrections in Charmless B Decays
In this paper, we focus on the role of power corrections in QCD
factorization(QCDF) method in charmless two-body nonleptonic meson decays.
We use the ratio of the branching fraction of to
that of , for which the theoretical uncertainties are
greatly reduced, to show clearly that the power corrections in charmless B
decays are probably large. With other similar ratios considered, for example,
for the decay, it is very likely that, among various
sources of power corrections, annihilation topology plays an indispensable role
at least for penguin dominated channels. We also consider some
selective ratios of direct CP asymmetries. Among these, we find that, if power
corrections other than the chirally enhanced power corrections and annihilation
topology were negligible, QCDF would predict the direct CP asymmetry of to be about 3 times larger than that of ,
with opposite sign. Experimentally any significant deviation from this
prediction would suggest either new physics or possibly the importance of
long-distance rescattering effects.Comment: references and note added, to appear in Phys. Rev.
Cluster Approximation for the Farey Fraction Spin Chain
We consider the Farey fraction spin chain in an external field . Utilising
ideas from dynamical systems, the free energy of the model is derived by means
of an effective cluster energy approximation. This approximation is valid for
divergent cluster sizes, and hence appropriate for the discussion of the
magnetizing transition. We calculate the phase boundaries and the scaling of
the free energy. At we reproduce the rigorously known asymptotic
temperature dependence of the free energy. For , our results are
largely consistent with those found previously using mean field theory and
renormalization group arguments.Comment: 17 pages, 3 figure
Pharmacokinetics and antinociceptive effects of tramadol and its metabolite O-desmethyltramadol following intravenous administration in sheep
Although sheep are widely used as an experimental model for various surgical procedures there is a paucity of data on the pharmacokinetics and efficacy of analgesic drugs in this species. The aims of this study were to investigate the pharmacokinetics of intravenously (IV) administered tramadol and its active metabolite O-desmethyltramadol (M1) and to assess the mechanical antinociceptive effects in sheep. In a prospective, randomized, blinded study, six healthy adult sheep were given 4 and 6\u2009mg/kg tramadol and saline IV in a cross-over design with a 2-week wash-out period. At predetermined time points blood samples were collected and physiological parameters and mechanical nociceptive threshold (MNT) values were recorded. The analytical determination of tramadol and M1 was performed using high performance liquid chromatography. Pharmacokinetic parameters fitted a two- and a non-compartmental model for tramadol and M1, respectively. Normally distributed data were analysed by a repeated mixed linear model. Plasma concentration vs. time profiles of tramadol and M1 were similar after the two doses. Tramadol and M1 plasma levels decreased rapidly in the systemic circulation, with both undetectable after 6\u2009h following drug administration. Physiological parameters did not differ between groups; MNT values were not statistically significant between groups at any time point. It was concluded that although tramadol and M1 concentrations in plasma were above the human minimum analgesic concentration after both treatments, no mechanical antinociceptive effects of tramadol were reported. Further studies are warranted to assess the analgesic efficacy of tramadol in sheep
On the monotonicity of scalar curvature in classical and quantum information geometry
We study the statistical monotonicity of the scalar curvature for the
alpha-geometries on the simplex of probability vectors. From the results
obtained and from numerical data we are led to some conjectures about quantum
alpha-geometries and Wigner-Yanase-Dyson information. Finally we show that this
last conjecture implies the truth of the Petz conjecture about the monotonicity
of the scalar curvature of the Bogoliubov-Kubo-Mori monotone metric.Comment: 20 pages, 2 .eps figures; (v2) section 2 rewritten, typos correcte
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