6,428 research outputs found
Effect of Dilution on First Order Transitions: The Three Dimensional Three States Potts Model
We have studied numerically the effect of quenched site dilution on a first
order phase transition in three dimensions. We have simulated the site diluted
three states Potts model studying in detail the second order region of its
phase diagram. We have found that the exponent is compatible with the one
of the three dimensional diluted Ising model whereas the exponent is
definitely different.Comment: RevTex. 6 pages and 6 postscript figure
Sense and sensitivity of double beta decay experiments
The search for neutrinoless double beta decay is a very active field in which
the number of proposals for next-generation experiments has proliferated. In
this paper we attempt to address both the sense and the sensitivity of such
proposals. Sensitivity comes first, by means of proposing a simple and
unambiguous statistical recipe to derive the sensitivity to a putative Majorana
neutrino mass, m_bb. In order to make sense of how the different experimental
approaches compare, we apply this recipe to a selection of proposals, comparing
the resulting sensitivities. We also propose a "physics-motivated range" (PMR)
of the nuclear matrix elements as a unifying criterium between the different
nuclear models. The expected performance of the proposals is parametrized in
terms of only four numbers: energy resolution, background rate (per unit time,
isotope mass and energy), detection efficiency, and bb isotope mass. For each
proposal, both a reference and an optimistic scenario for the experimental
performance are studied. In the reference scenario we find that all the
proposals will be able to partially explore the degenerate spectrum, without
fully covering it, although four of them (KamLAND-Zen, CUORE, NEXT and EXO)
will approach the 50 meV boundary. In the optimistic scenario, we find that
CUORE and the xenon-based proposals (KamLAND-Zen, EXO and NEXT) will explore a
significant fraction of the inverse hierarchy, with NEXT covering it almost
fully. For the long term future, we argue that Xe-based experiments may provide
the best case for a 1-ton scale experiment, given the potentially very low
backgrounds achievable and the expected scalability to large isotope masses.Comment: 30 pages, 12 figures, 6 table
Medicinal Plants of Chile: Evaluation of their Anti-Trypanosoma cruzi Activity
San Martin, J (San Martin, Jose). Univ Talca, Inst Biol Vegetal & Biotecnol, Talca, ChileThe extracts of several plants of Central Chile exhibited anti-Trypanosoma cruzi trypomastigotes activity. Most active extracts were those obtained from Podanthus ovatifolius, Berberis microphylla, Kageneckia oblonga, and Drimys winteri. The active extract of Drimys winteri (IC50 51.2 mu g/mL) was purified and three drimane sesquiterpenes were obtained: polygodial, drimenol, and isodrimenin. Isodrimenin and drimenol were found to be active against the trypomastigote form of T cruzi with IC50 values of 27.9 and 25.1 mu M, respectivel
Optic radiation structure and anatomy in the normally developing brain determined using diffusion MRI and tractography
The optic radiation (OR) is a component of the visual system known to be myelin mature very early in life. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and its unique ability to reconstruct the OR in vivo were used to study structural maturation through analysis of DTI metrics in a cohort of 90 children aged 5–18 years. As the OR is at risk of damage during epilepsy surgery, we measured its position relative to characteristic anatomical landmarks. Anatomical distances, DTI metrics and volume of the OR were investigated for age, gender and hemisphere effects. We observed changes in DTI metrics with age comparable to known trajectories in other white matter tracts. Left lateralization of DTI metrics was observed that showed a gender effect in lateralization. Sexual dimorphism of DTI metrics in the right hemisphere was also found. With respect to OR dimensions, volume was shown to be right lateralised and sexual dimorphism demonstrated for the extent of the left OR. The anatomical results presented for the OR have potentially important applications for neurosurgical planning
Ianus: an Adpative FPGA Computer
Dedicated machines designed for specific computational algorithms can
outperform conventional computers by several orders of magnitude. In this note
we describe {\it Ianus}, a new generation FPGA based machine and its basic
features: hardware integration and wide reprogrammability. Our goal is to build
a machine that can fully exploit the performance potential of new generation
FPGA devices. We also plan a software platform which simplifies its
programming, in order to extend its intended range of application to a wide
class of interesting and computationally demanding problems. The decision to
develop a dedicated processor is a complex one, involving careful assessment of
its performance lead, during its expected lifetime, over traditional computers,
taking into account their performance increase, as predicted by Moore's law. We
discuss this point in detail
New Energy Calibration of the CMAM 5MV Tandem Accelerator
Abstract Ion accelerators are fundamental in the ongoing research on materials for future energy sources, being the primary tool for understanding the behaviour of different classes of materials (functional, structural, diagnostic) under e.g. the intense radiation expected in fission reactors or the critical thermal operational conditions in IV generation fission reactors. The relevance of ion accelerators research extends straightforwardly to the modification and analysis of materials to be used in future developments of diverse non-nuclear sources like photovoltaic, fuel batteries, etc. From the analytical point of view, the energy of the accelerated ion needs, in many cases, to be known with a precision higher than e.g. the width of reaction resonances that are used for controlling either the yield of a reaction or the penetration depth of the ion, imposing a calibration of the accelerator terminal voltage. This paper reports on the new energy calibration performed for the 5 MV CMAM tandem accelerator
The genome of Streptococcus pneumoniae is organized in topology-reacting gene clusters
The transcriptional response of Streptococcus pneumoniae was examined after exposure to the GyrB-inhibitor novobiocin. Topoisomer distributions of an internal plasmid confirmed DNA relaxation and recovery of the native level of supercoiling at low novobiocin concentrations. This was due to the up-regulation of DNA gyrase and the down-regulation of topoisomerases I and IV. In addition, >13% of the genome exhibited relaxation-dependent transcription. The majority of the responsive genes (>68%) fell into 15 physical clusters (14.6–85.6 kb) that underwent coordinated regulation, independently of operon organization. These genomic clusters correlated with AT content and codon composition, showing the chromosome to be organized into topology-reacting gene clusters that respond to DNA supercoiling. In particular, down-regulated clusters were flanked by 11–40 kb AT-rich zones that might have a putative structural function. This is the first case where genes responding to changes in the level of supercoiling in a coordinated manner were found organized as functional clusters. Such an organization revealed DNA supercoiling as a general feature that controls gene expression superimposed on other kinds of more specific regulatory mechanisms
The three dimensional Ising spin glass in an external magnetic field: the role of the silent majority
We perform equilibrium parallel-tempering simulations of the 3D Ising
Edwards-Anderson spin glass in a field. A traditional analysis shows no signs
of a phase transition. Yet, we encounter dramatic fluctuations in the behaviour
of the model: Averages over all the data only describe the behaviour of a small
fraction of it. Therefore we develop a new approach to study the equilibrium
behaviour of the system, by classifying the measurements as a function of a
conditioning variate. We propose a finite-size scaling analysis based on the
probability distribution function of the conditioning variate, which may
accelerate the convergence to the thermodynamic limit. In this way, we find a
non-trivial spectrum of behaviours, where a part of the measurements behaves as
the average, while the majority of them shows signs of scale invariance. As a
result, we can estimate the temperature interval where the phase transition in
a field ought to lie, if it exists. Although this would-be critical regime is
unreachable with present resources, the numerical challenge is finally well
posed.Comment: 42 pages, 19 figures. Minor changes and added figure (results
unchanged
Genome wide analysis of fatty acid desaturation and its response to temperature
Plants modify the polyunsaturated fatty acid content of their membrane and storage lipids in order to adapt to changes in temperature. In developing seeds, this response is largely controlled by the activities of the microsomal ω-6 and ω-3 fatty acid desaturases, FAD2 and FAD3. Although temperature regulation of desaturation has been studied at the molecular and biochemical levels, the genetic control of this trait is poorly understood. Here, we have characterized the response of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) seed lipids to variation in ambient temperature and found that heat inhibits both ω-6 and ω-3 desaturation in phosphatidylcholine, leading to a proportional change in triacylglycerol composition. Analysis of the 19 parental accessions of the multiparent advanced generation intercross (MAGIC) population showed that significant natural variation exists in the temperature responsiveness of ω-6 desaturation. A combination of quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis and genome-wide association studies (GWAS) using the MAGIC population suggests that ω-6 desaturation is largely controlled by cis-acting sequence variants in the FAD2 5′ untranslated region intron that determine the expression level of the gene. However, the temperature responsiveness of ω-6 desaturation is controlled by a separate QTL on chromosome 2. The identity of this locus is unknown, but genome-wide association studies identified potentially causal sequence variants within ∼40 genes in an ∼450-kb region of the QTL
Crystallization Kinetics of LaF3 Nanocrystals in an Oxyfluoride Glass
Nanocrystallization of LaF3 in a glass of composition 55SiO2–
20Al2O3–15Na2O–10LaF3 (mol%) has been achieved by heat
treatment above the glass transition temperature. A maximum
crystal size of 14 nm has been attained, with the crystalline
fraction and crystal size dependent on the time and temperature
of thermal treatment. The effect of lanthanum fluoride crystallization
is noticeable from the microstructural and compositional
changes in the glass matrix, which have been studied using
several techniques, including viscosity, dilatometry, X-ray diffraction,
and quantitative Rietveld refinement, transmission
electron microscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry.
The crystallization mechanism is shown to occur via regions of
La- and Si-phase separation in the glass, from which the fluoride
crystals develop during heat treatment. The interface between
the glass matrix and the crystals in the demixed ranges is
enriched in network formers, mainly SiO2, creating a viscous
barrier, which inhibits further crystal growth and limits the
crystal size to the nanometric range.Peer reviewe
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