A Nonlinear Lagrangian Model for Plane Frames Pre-desing

We propose a nonlinear lagrangian model that takes into account the dynamic interactions between the soil and a n-storey plane frame, which may be subjected to a seismic excitation through the soil. First, the interaction of the soil with the structure is modeled through a combination of springs and dampers representing the characteristics of the soil. In this model, the masses and stiffnesses of the structure elements are condensed to facilitate the analysis. Second, the Euler-Lagrange equations of the system are formulated and generalized for n floors. Third, these equations are discretized using the finite difference method to solve them using the Newton-Raphson method at each time step, during and after the seismic excitation, thus, determining the positions of each concentrated mass of the system. In addition, a linearization of the governing equations is performed in order to compare these results with those of the nonlinear model. Finally, the nonlinear model is used for the analysis of a 10-storey building, which has already been designed for linear geometric and material behaviors. For this analysis, the corrected acceleration record of the 2016 Pedernales (Ecuador) earthquake is used

Towards a more accurate characterization of granular media 2.0: Involving AI in the process

publishedVersio

Effect of Feedback of Massive Stars in the Fragmentation, Distribution, and Kinematics of the Gas in Two Star-forming Regions in the Carina Nebula

We present ALMA high spatial resolution observations toward two star-forming regions located in one of the most extreme zones of star formation in the Galaxy, the Carina Nebula. One region is located at the center of the nebula and is severally affected by the stellar feedback from high-mass stars, while the other region is located farther south and is less disturbed by the massive-star clusters. We found that the region at the center of the nebula is forming less but more massive cores than the region located in the south, suggesting that the level of stellar feedback effectively influences the fragmentation process in clumps. Lines such as HCN, HCO+, and SiO show abundant and complex gas distributions in both regions, confirming the presence of ionization and shock fronts. Jeans analysis suggests that the observed core masses in the region less affected by the massive stars are consistent with thermal fragmentation, but turbulent Jeans fragmentation might explain the high masses of the cores identified in the region in the center of Carina. Consistently, two different analyses in the HCO+ line provided evidence for a higher level of turbulence in the gas more affected by the stellar feedback. The gas column density probability functions, N-pdf’s, show lognormal shapes with clear transitions to power-law regimes. We observed a wider N-pdf in the region at the center of the nebula, which provides further evidence for a higher level of turbulence in the material with a higher level of massive stellar feedback.Indexación: Scopu

Triacylglycerol Fatty Acid Composition in Diet-Induced Weight Loss in Subjects with Abnormal Glucose Metabolism – the GENOBIN Study

BACKGROUND: The effect of weight loss on different plasma lipid subclasses at the molecular level is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine whether a diet-induced weight reduction result in changes in the extended plasma lipid profiles (lipidome) in subjects with features of metabolic syndrome in a 33-week intervention. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Plasma samples of 9 subjects in the weight reduction group and 10 subjects in the control group were analyzed using mass spectrometry based lipidomic and fatty acid analyses. Body weight decreased in the weight reduction group by 7.8+/-2.9% (p<0.01). Most of the serum triacylglycerols and phosphatidylcholines were reduced. The decrease in triacylglycerols affected predominantly the saturated short chain fatty acids. This decrease of saturated short chain fatty acid containing triacylglycerols correlated with the increase of insulin sensitivity. However, levels of several longer chain fatty acids, including arachidonic and docosahexanoic acid, were not affected by weight loss. Levels of other lipids known to be associated with obesity such as sphingolipids and lysophosphatidylcholines were not altered by weight reduction. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Diet-induced weight loss caused significant changes in global lipid profiles in subjects with abnormal glucose metabolism. The observed changes may affect insulin sensitivity and glucose metabolism in these subjects. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00621205

Constraints on the χ_(c1) versus χ_(c2) polarizations in proton-proton collisions at √s = 8 TeV

The polarizations of promptly produced χ_(c1) and χ_(c2) mesons are studied using data collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC, in proton-proton collisions at √s=8  TeV. The χ_c states are reconstructed via their radiative decays χ_c → J/ψγ, with the photons being measured through conversions to e⁺e⁻, which allows the two states to be well resolved. The polarizations are measured in the helicity frame, through the analysis of the χ_(c2) to χ_(c1) yield ratio as a function of the polar or azimuthal angle of the positive muon emitted in the J/ψ → μ⁺μ⁻ decay, in three bins of J/ψ transverse momentum. While no differences are seen between the two states in terms of azimuthal decay angle distributions, they are observed to have significantly different polar anisotropies. The measurement favors a scenario where at least one of the two states is strongly polarized along the helicity quantization axis, in agreement with nonrelativistic quantum chromodynamics predictions. This is the first measurement of significantly polarized quarkonia produced at high transverse momentum