43,109 research outputs found
Comparative approaches for assessing access to alcohol outlets: exploring the utility of a gravity potential approach.
BackgroundA growing body of research recommends controlling alcohol availability to reduce harm. Various common approaches, however, provide dramatically different pictures of the physical availability of alcohol. This limits our understanding of the distribution of alcohol access, the causes and consequences of this distribution, and how best to reduce harm. The aim of this study is to introduce both a gravity potential measure of access to alcohol outlets, comparing its strengths and weaknesses to other popular approaches, and an empirically-derived taxonomy of neighborhoods based on the type of alcohol access they exhibit.MethodsWe obtained geospatial data on Seattle, including the location of 2402 alcohol outlets, United States Census Bureau estimates on 567 block groups, and a comprehensive street network. We used exploratory spatial data analysis and employed a measure of inter-rater agreement to capture differences in our taxonomy of alcohol availability measures.ResultsSignificant statistical and spatial variability exists between measures of alcohol access, and these differences have meaningful practical implications. In particular, standard measures of outlet density (e.g., spatial, per capita, roadway miles) can lead to biased estimates of physical availability that over-emphasize the influence of the control variables. Employing a gravity potential approach provides a more balanced, geographically-sensitive measure of access to alcohol outlets.ConclusionsAccurately measuring the physical availability of alcohol is critical for understanding the causes and consequences of its distribution and for developing effective evidence-based policy to manage the alcohol outlet licensing process. A gravity potential model provides a superior measure of alcohol access, and the alcohol access-based taxonomy a helpful evidence-based heuristic for scholars and local policymakers
Relativistic theory of tidal Love numbers
In Newtonian gravitational theory, a tidal Love number relates the mass
multipole moment created by tidal forces on a spherical body to the applied
tidal field. The Love number is dimensionless, and it encodes information about
the body's internal structure. We present a relativistic theory of Love
numbers, which applies to compact bodies with strong internal gravities; the
theory extends and completes a recent work by Flanagan and Hinderer, which
revealed that the tidal Love number of a neutron star can be measured by
Earth-based gravitational-wave detectors. We consider a spherical body deformed
by an external tidal field, and provide precise and meaningful definitions for
electric-type and magnetic-type Love numbers; and these are computed for
polytropic equations of state. The theory applies to black holes as well, and
we find that the relativistic Love numbers of a nonrotating black hole are all
zero.Comment: 25 pages, 8 figures, many tables; final version to be published in
Physical Review
KPP reaction-diffusion equations with a non-linear loss inside a cylinder
We consider in this paper a reaction-diffusion system in presence of a flow
and under a KPP hypothesis. While the case of a single-equation has been
extensively studied since the pioneering Kolmogorov-Petrovski-Piskunov paper,
the study of the corresponding system with a Lewis number not equal to 1 is
still quite open. Here, we will prove some results about the existence of
travelling fronts and generalized travelling fronts solutions of such a system
with the presence of a non-linear spacedependent loss term inside the domain.
In particular, we will point out the existence of a minimal speed, above which
any real value is an admissible speed. We will also give some spreading results
for initial conditions decaying exponentially at infinity
Plasma Electron Beam Welder for Space Vehicles Final Report
Feasibility of developing plasma electron beam welding system for earth orbiting vehicl
Magnetization reversal in Kagome artificial spin ice studied by first-order reversal curves
Magnetization reversal of interconnected Kagome artificial spin ice was
studied by the first-order reversal curve (FORC) technique based on the
magneto-optical Kerr effect and magnetoresistance measurements. The
magnetization reversal exhibits a distinct six-fold symmetry with the external
field orientation. When the field is parallel to one of the nano-bar branches,
the domain nucleation/propagation and annihilation processes sensitively depend
on the field cycling history and the maximum field applied. When the field is
nearly perpendicular to one of the branches, the FORC measurement reveals the
magnetic interaction between the Dirac strings and orthogonal branches during
the magnetization reversal process. Our results demonstrate that the FORC
approach provides a comprehensive framework for understanding the magnetic
interaction in the magnetization reversal processes of spin-frustrated systems
Outflows at the Edges of an Active Region in a Coronal Hole: A Signature of Active Region Expansion?
Outflows of plasma at the edges of active regions surrounded by quiet Sun are
now a common observation with the Hinode satellite. While there is
observational evidence to suggest that the outflows are originating in the
magnetic field surrounding the active regions, there is no conclusive evidence
that reveals how they are driven. Motivated by observations of outflows at the
periphery of a mature active region embedded in a coronal hole, we have used a
three-dimensional simulation to emulate the active region's development in
order to investigate the origin and driver of these outflows. We find outflows
are accelerated from a site in the coronal hole magnetic field immediately
surrounding the active region and are channelled along the coronal hole field
as they rise through the atmosphere. The plasma is accelerated simply as a
result of the active region expanding horizontally as it develops. Many of the
characteristics of the outflows generated in the simulation are consistent with
those of observed outflows: velocities up to 45 km per sec, properties akin to
the coronal hole, proximity to the active region's draining loops, expansion
with height, and projection over monopolar photospheric magnetic
concentrations. Although the horizontal expansion occurs as a consequence of
the active region's development in the simulation, expansion is also a general
feature of established active regions. Hence, it is entirely possible and
plausible that the expansion acceleration mechanism displayed in the simulation
is occurring in active regions on the Sun and, in addition to reconnection, is
driving the outflows observed at their edges.Comment: 19 pages, 9 figure
Size of Outbreaks Near the Epidemic Threshold
The spread of infectious diseases near the epidemic threshold is
investigated. Scaling laws for the size and the duration of outbreaks
originating from a single infected individual in a large susceptible population
are obtained. The maximal size of an outbreak n_* scales as N^{2/3} with N the
population size. This scaling law implies that the average outbreak size
scales as N^{1/3}. Moreover, the maximal and the average duration of an
outbreak grow as t_* ~ N^{1/3} and ~ ln N, respectively.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
Atomic masses of intermediate-mass neutron-deficient nuclei with relative uncertainty down to 35-ppb via multireflection time-of-flight mass spectrograph
High-precision mass measurements of Cu, Zn, Ga,
Ge, As, Br, Rb, and Sr were performed
utilizing a multireflection time-of-flight mass spectrograph combined with the
gas-filled recoil ion separator GARIS-II. In the case of Ga, a mass
uncertainty of 2.1 keV, corresponding to a relative precision of , was obtained and the mass value is in excellent agreement
with the 2016 Atomic Mass Evaluation. For Ge and Br, where masses
were previously deduced through indirect measurements, discrepancies with
literature values were found. The feasibility of using this device for mass
measurements of nuclides more neutron-deficient side, which have significant
impact on the -process pathway, is discussed.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures, 1 tabl
Noise Induced Complexity: From Subthreshold Oscillations to Spiking in Coupled Excitable Systems
We study stochastic dynamics of an ensemble of N globally coupled excitable
elements. Each element is modeled by a FitzHugh-Nagumo oscillator and is
disturbed by independent Gaussian noise. In simulations of the Langevin
dynamics we characterize the collective behavior of the ensemble in terms of
its mean field and show that with the increase of noise the mean field displays
a transition from a steady equilibrium to global oscillations and then, for
sufficiently large noise, back to another equilibrium. Diverse regimes of
collective dynamics ranging from periodic subthreshold oscillations to
large-amplitude oscillations and chaos are observed in the course of this
transition. In order to understand details and mechanisms of noise-induced
dynamics we consider a thermodynamic limit of the ensemble, and
derive the cumulant expansion describing temporal evolution of the mean field
fluctuations. In the Gaussian approximation this allows us to perform the
bifurcation analysis; its results are in good agreement with dynamical
scenarios observed in the stochastic simulations of large ensembles
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