Core of the Magnetic Obstacle

Rich recirculation patterns have been recently discovered in the electrically conducting flow subject to a local external magnetic termed "the magnetic obstacle" [Phys. Rev. Lett. 98 (2007), 144504]. This paper continues the study of magnetic obstacles and sheds new light on the core of the magnetic obstacle that develops between magnetic poles when the intensity of the external field is very large. A series of both 3D and 2D numerical simulations have been carried out, through which it is shown that the core of the magnetic obstacle is streamlined both by the upstream flow and by the induced cross stream electric currents, like a foreign insulated insertion placed inside the ordinary hydrodynamic flow. The closed streamlines of the mass flow resemble contour lines of electric potential, while closed streamlines of the electric current resemble contour lines of pressure. New recirculation patterns not reported before are found in the series of 2D simulations. These are composed of many (even number) vortices aligned along the spanwise line crossing the magnetic gap. The intensities of these vortices are shown to vanish toward to the center of the magnetic gap, confirming the general conclusion of 3D simulations that the core of the magnetic obstacle is frozen. The implications of these findings for the case of turbulent flow are discussed briefly.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Journal of Turbulenc

Herbivorous turtle ants obtain essential nutrients from a conserved nitrogen-recycling gut microbiome.

Nitrogen acquisition is a major challenge for herbivorous animals, and the repeated origins of herbivory across the ants have raised expectations that nutritional symbionts have shaped their diversification. Direct evidence for N provisioning by internally housed symbionts is rare in animals; among the ants, it has been documented for just one lineage. In this study we dissect functional contributions by bacteria from a conserved, multi-partite gut symbiosis in herbivorous Cephalotes ants through in vivo experiments, metagenomics, and in vitro assays. Gut bacteria recycle urea, and likely uric acid, using recycled N to synthesize essential amino acids that are acquired by hosts in substantial quantities. Specialized core symbionts of 17 studied Cephalotes species encode the pathways directing these activities, and several recycle N in vitro. These findings point to a highly efficient N economy, and a nutritional mutualism preserved for millions of years through the derived behaviors and gut anatomy of Cephalotes ants

The critical dimension for a 4th order problem with singular nonlinearity

We study the regularity of the extremal solution of the semilinear biharmonic equation \bi u=\f{\lambda}{(1-u)^2}, which models a simple Micro-Electromechanical System (MEMS) device on a ball B\subset\IR^N, under Dirichlet boundary conditions $u=\partial_\nu u=0$ on $\partial B$. We complete here the results of F.H. Lin and Y.S. Yang \cite{LY} regarding the identification of a "pull-in voltage" \la^*>0 such that a stable classical solution u_\la with 0 exists for \la\in (0,\la^*), while there is none of any kind when \la>\la^*. Our main result asserts that the extremal solution $u_{\lambda^*}$ is regular $(\sup_B u_{\lambda^*} <1)$ provided $N \le 8$ while $u_{\lambda^*}$ is singular ($\sup_B u_{\lambda^*} =1$) for $N \ge 9$, in which case $1-C_0|x|^{4/3}\leq u_{\lambda^*} (x) \leq 1-|x|^{4/3}$ on the unit ball, where $C_0:= (\frac{\lambda^*}{\overline{\lambda}})^{1/3}$ and $\bar{\lambda}:= {8/9} (N-{2/3}) (N- {8/3})$.Comment: 19 pages. This paper completes and replaces a paper (with a similar title) which appeared in arXiv:0810.5380. Updated versions --if any-- of this author's papers can be downloaded at this http://www.birs.ca/~nassif

Analytic solutions to determine critical magnetic fields for thermoelectric magnetohydrodynamics in alloy solidification

During alloy solidification, it has been observed that the morphology of microstructures can be altered by applying an external DC magnetic field. This structural change can be attributed to solutal convective transport introduced by thermoelectric magnetohydrodynamics (TEMHD) which drives fluid motion within the inter-dendritic region. Complex numerical models with grid resolutions on the microscopic scale have been constructed to solve the equations governing TEMHD. To complement these computationally intensive numerical models, analytic solutions were sought. Specifically, the analytic solutions presented herein are asymptotic solutions derived for TEMHD under low and high magnetic field intensities. Combination of these asymptotic solutions leads to simple formulae for estimating critical magnetic fields which can be readily evaluated in terms of characteristic lengths of materials that have been identified in experiments as key parameters of critical fields. Indeed, the critical magnetic fields predicted with the asymptotic solutions exhibit magnitudes consistent with those applied in current ongoing experiments where significant changes in microstructure have been observed. The capability to predict accurate results indicates that the analytic solutions described herein are valuable precursors not only for detailed numerical simulations but also for experimental design to study critical magnetic fields in alloy solidification

From nonwetting to prewetting: the asymptotic behavior of 4He drops on alkali substrates

We investigate the spreading of 4He droplets on alkali surfaces at zero temperature, within the frame of Finite Range Density Functional theory. The equilibrium configurations of several 4He_N clusters and their asymptotic trend with increasing particle number N, which can be traced to the wetting behavior of the quantum fluid, are examined for nanoscopic droplets. We discuss the size effects, inferring that the asymptotic properties of large droplets correspond to those of the prewetting film

Kinetics of active surface-mediated diffusion in spherically symmetric domains

We present an exact calculation of the mean first-passage time to a target on the surface of a 2D or 3D spherical domain, for a molecule alternating phases of surface diffusion on the domain boundary and phases of bulk diffusion. We generalize the results of [J. Stat. Phys. {\bf 142}, 657 (2011)] and consider a biased diffusion in a general annulus with an arbitrary number of regularly spaced targets on a partially reflecting surface. The presented approach is based on an integral equation which can be solved analytically. Numerically validated approximation schemes, which provide more tractable expressions of the mean first-passage time are also proposed. In the framework of this minimal model of surface-mediated reactions, we show analytically that the mean reaction time can be minimized as a function of the desorption rate from the surface.Comment: Published online in J. Stat. Phy

Dabrafenib plus trametinib in patients with relapsed/refractory BRAF V600E mutation–positive hairy cell leukemia

BRAF V600E is the key oncogenic driver mutation in hairy cell leukemia (HCL). We report the efficacy and safety of dabrafenib plus trametinib in patients with relapsed/refractory BRAF V600E mutation–positive HCL. This open-label, phase 2 study enrolled patients with BRAF V600E mutation–positive HCL refractory to first-line treatment with a purine analog or relapsed after ≥2 prior lines of treatment. Patients received dabrafenib 150 mg twice daily plus trametinib 2 mg once daily until disease progression, unacceptable toxicity, or death. The primary endpoint was investigator-assessed objective response rate (ORR) per criteria adapted from National Comprehensive Cancer Network-Consensus Resolution guidelines. Secondary endpoints included duration of response (DOR), progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and safety. Fifty-five patients with BRAF V600E mutation–positive HCL were enrolled. The investigator-assessed ORR was 89.0% (95% confidence interval, 77.8%-95.9%); 65.5% of patients had a complete response (without minimal residual disease [MRD]: 9.1% [negative immunohistochemistry of bone marrow {BM} biopsy], 12.7% [negative BM aspirate flow cytometry {FC}], 16.4% [negative immunohistochemistry and/or FC results]; with MRD, 49.1%), and 23.6% had a partial response. The 24-month DOR was 97.7% with 24-month PFS and OS rates of 94.4% and 94.5%, respectively. The most common treatment-related adverse events were pyrexia (58.2%), chills (47.3%), and hyperglycemia (40.0%). Dabrafenib plus trametinib demonstrated durable responses with a manageable safety profile consistent with previous observations in other indications and should be considered as a rituximab-free therapeutic option for patients with relapsed/refractory BRAF V600E mutation–positive HCL. This trial is registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT02034110.</p

Author Correction: Herbivorous turtle ants obtain essential nutrients from a conserved nitrogen-recycling gut microbiome.

The originally published version of the Supplementary Information file associated with this Article contained an error in Supplementary Figure 3. Panel b was inadvertently replaced with a duplicate of panel a. The error has now been fixed and the corrected version of the Supplementary Information PDF is available to download from the HTML version of the Article

Coevolution of Genome Architecture and Social Behavior.

Although social behavior can have a strong genetic component, it can also result in selection on genome structure and function, thereby influencing the evolution of the genome itself. Here we explore the bidirectional links between social behavior and genome architecture by considering variation in social and/or mating behavior among populations (social polymorphisms) and across closely related species. We propose that social behavior can influence genome architecture via associated demographic changes due to social living. We establish guidelines to exploit emerging whole-genome sequences using analytical approaches that examine genome structure and function at different levels (regulatory vs structural variation) from the perspective of both molecular biology and population genetics in an ecological context