Persistence of chimera states and the challenge for synchronization in real-world networks

The emergence of order in nature manifests in different phenomena, with synchronization being one of the most representative examples. Understanding the role played by the interactions between the constituting parts of a complex system in synchronization has become a pivotal research question bridging network science and dynamical systems. Particular attention has been paid to the emergence of chimera states, where subsets of synchronized oscillations coexist with asynchronous ones. Such coexistence of coherence and incoherence is a perfect example where order and disorder can persist in a long-lasting regime. Although considerable progress has been made in recent years to understand such coherent and (coexisting) incoherent states, how they manifest in real-world networks remains to be addressed. Based on a symmetry-breaking mechanism, in this paper, we shed light on the role that non-normality, a ubiquitous structural property of real networks, has in the emergence of several diverse dynamical phenomena, e.g., amplitude chimeras or oscillon patterns. Specifically, we demonstrate that the prevalence of source or leader nodes in networks leads to the manifestation of phase chimera states. Throughout the paper, we emphasize that non-normality poses ongoing challenges to global synchronization and is instrumental in the emergence of chimera states

Plasma torch for ignition, flameholding and enhancement of combustion in high speed flows

Preheating of fuel and injection into a plasma torch plume fro adjacent the plasma torch plume provides for only ignition with reduced delay but improved fuel-air mixing and fuel atomization as well as combustion reaction enhancement. Heat exchange also reduced erosion of the anode of the plasma torch. Fuel mixing atomization, fuel mixture distribution enhancement and combustion reaction enhancement are improved by unsteady plasma torch energization, integral formation of the heat exchanger, fuel injection nozzle and plasma torch anode in a more compact, low-profile arrangement which is not intrusive on a highspeed air flow with which the invention is particularly effective and further enhanced by use of nitrogen as a feedstock material and inclusion of high pressure gases in the fuel to cause effervescence during injection

Nickel-doped ceria nanoparticles : the effect of annealing on room temperature ferromagnetism

Nickel-doped cerium dioxide nanoparticles exhibit room temperature ferromagnetism due to high oxygen mobility within the doped CeO2 lattice. CeO2 is an excellent doping matrix as it can lose oxygen whilst retaining its structure. This leads to increased oxygen mobility within the fluorite CeO2 lattice, leading to the formation of Ce3+ and Ce4+ species and hence doped ceria shows a high propensity for numerous catalytic processes. Magnetic ceria are important in several applications from magnetic data storage devices to magnetically recoverable catalysts. We investigate the effect doping nickel into a CeO2 lattice has on the room temperature ferromagnetism in monodisperse cerium dioxide nanoparticles synthesised by the thermal decomposition of cerium(III) and nickel(II) oleate metal organic precursors before and after annealing. The composition of nanoparticles pre- and post-anneal were analysed using: TEM (transmission electron microscopy), XPS (X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy), EDS (energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy) and XRD (X-ray diffraction). Optical and magnetic properties were also studied using UV/Visible spectroscopy and SQUID (superconducting interference device) magnetometry respectively

Computer investigation of a destroyer steam generator

http://www.archive.org/details/computerinvestig00creaU.S. Navy (U.S.N.) authors

Time-lapse imaging and cell-specific expression profiling reveal dynamic branching and molecular determinants of a multi-dendritic nociceptor in C. elegans

AbstractNociceptive neurons innervate the skin with complex dendritic arbors that respond to pain-evoking stimuli such as harsh mechanical force or extreme temperatures. Here we describe the structure and development of a model nociceptor, the PVD neuron of C. elegans, and identify transcription factors that control morphogenesis of the PVD dendritic arbor. The two PVD neuron cell bodies occupy positions on either the right (PVDR) or left (PVDL) sides of the animal in posterior–lateral locations. Imaging with a GFP reporter revealed a single axon projecting from the PVD soma to the ventral cord and an elaborate, highly branched arbor of dendritic processes that envelop the animal with a web-like array directly beneath the skin. Dendritic branches emerge in a step-wise fashion during larval development and may use an existing network of peripheral nerve cords as guideposts for key branching decisions. Time-lapse imaging revealed that branching is highly dynamic with active extension and withdrawal and that PVD branch overlap is prevented by a contact-dependent self-avoidance, a mechanism that is also employed by sensory neurons in other organisms. With the goal of identifying genes that regulate dendritic morphogenesis, we used the mRNA-tagging method to produce a gene expression profile of PVD during late larval development. This microarray experiment identified>2,000 genes that are 1.5X elevated relative to all larval cells. The enriched transcripts encode a wide range of proteins with potential roles in PVD function (e.g., DEG/ENaC and Trp channels) or development (e.g., UNC-5 and LIN-17/frizzled receptors). We used RNAi and genetic tests to screen 86 transcription factors from this list and identified eleven genes that specify PVD dendritic structure. These transcription factors appear to control discrete steps in PVD morphogenesis and may either promote or limit PVD branching at specific developmental stages. For example, time-lapse imaging revealed that MEC-3 (LIM homeodomain) is required for branch initiation in early larval development whereas EGL-44 (TEAD domain) prevents ectopic PVD branching in the adult. A comparison of PVD-enriched transcripts to a microarray profile of mammalian nociceptors revealed homologous genes with potentially shared nociceptive functions. We conclude that PVD neurons display striking structural, functional and molecular similarities to nociceptive neurons from more complex organisms and can thus provide a useful model system in which to identify evolutionarily conserved determinants of nociceptor fate

High Temperature Limit of the Confining Phase

The deconfining transition in non-Abelian gauge theory is known to occur by a condensation of Wilson lines. By expanding around an appropriate Wilson line background, it is possible at large $N$ to analytically continue the confining phase to arbitrarily high temperatures, reaching a weak coupling confinement regime. This is used to study the high temperature partition function of an $SU(N)$ electric flux tube. It is found that the partition function corresponds to that of a string theory with a number of world-sheet fields that diverges at short distance.Comment: 13 page

MicroRNA profiling reveals marker of motor neuron disease in ALS models

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder marked by the loss of motor neurons (MNs) in the brain and spinal cord, leading to fatally debilitating weakness. Because this disease predominantly affects MNs, we aimed to characterize the distinct expression profile of that cell type to elucidate underlying disease mechanisms and to identify novel targets that inform on MN health during ALS disease time course. microRNAs (miRNAs) are short, noncoding RNAs that can shape the expression profile of a cell and thus often exhibit cell-type-enriched expression. To determine MN-enriched miRNA expression, we used Cre recombinase-dependent miRNA tagging and affinity purification in mice. By defining thein vivomiRNA expression of MNs, all neurons, astrocytes, and microglia, we then focused on MN-enriched miRNAs via a comparative analysis and found that they may functionally distinguish MNs postnatally from other spinal neurons. Characterizing the levels of the MN-enriched miRNAs in CSF harvested from ALS models of MN disease demonstrated that one miRNA (miR-218) tracked with MN loss and was responsive to an ALS therapy in rodent models. Therefore, we have used cellular expression profiling tools to define the distinct miRNA expression of MNs, which is likely to enrich future studies of MN disease. This approach enabled the development of a novel, drug-responsive marker of MN disease in ALS rodents.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTAmyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease in which motor neurons (MNs) in the brain and spinal cord are selectively lost. To develop tools to aid in our understanding of the distinct expression profiles of MNs and, ultimately, to monitor MN disease progression, we identified small regulatory microRNAs (miRNAs) that were highly enriched or exclusive in MNs. The signal for one of these MN-enriched miRNAs is detectable in spinal tap biofluid from an ALS rat model, where its levels change as disease progresses, suggesting that it may be a clinically useful marker of disease status. Furthermore, rats treated with ALS therapy have restored expression of this MN RNA marker, making it an MN-specific and drug-responsive marker for ALS rodents.</jats:p

Nanoparticles of Cu2ZnSnS4 as performance enhancing additives for organic field-effect transistors

The addition of oleylamine coated Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) nanoparticles to solutions of an organic semiconductor used to fabricate organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) has been investigated. The oligothiophene-based small molecule 5T-TTF and the polymer poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) were each applied in the transistors with various concentrations of CZTS (5-20%). Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was applied to characterise the surface morphology of the OFETs. The use of 5 and 10 wt% of the CZTS nanoparticles in 5T-TTF and P3HT solutions, respectively, appears to be a simple and effective way of improving OFET performance

BMQ

BMQ: Boston Medical Quarterly was published from 1950-1966 by the Boston University School of Medicine and the Massachusetts Memorial Hospitals