Fourier analysis, linear programming, and densities of distance avoiding sets in {RnR^n}

In this paper we derive new upper bounds for the densities of measurable sets in R^n which avoid a finite set of prescribed distances. The new bounds come from the solution of a linear programming problem. We apply this method to obtain new upper bounds for measurable sets which avoid the unit distance in dimensions 2,..., 24. This gives new lower bounds for the measurable chromatic number in dimensions 3,..., 24. We apply it to get a new, short proof of a recent result of Bukh which in turn generalizes theorems of Furstenberg, Katznelson, Weiss and Bourgain and Falconer about sets avoiding many distances

Dynamical properties of a particle in a wave packet: scaling invariance and boundary crisis

Some dynamical properties present in a problem concerning the acceleration of particles in a wave packet are studied. The dynamics of the model is described in terms of a two-dimensional area preserving map. We show that the phase space is mixed in the sense that there are regular and chaotic regions coexisting. We use a connection with the standard map in order to find the position of the first invariant spanning curve which borders the chaotic sea. We find that the position of the first invariant spanning curve increases as a power of the control parameter with the exponent 2/3. The standard deviation of the kinetic energy of an ensemble of initial conditions obeys a power law as a function of time, and saturates after some crossover. Scaling formalism is used in order to characterize the chaotic region close to the transition from integrability to nonintegrability and a relationship between the power law exponents is derived. The formalism can be applied in many different systems with mixed phase space. Then, dissipation is introduced into the model and therefore the property of area preservation is broken, and consequently attractors are observed. We show that after a small change of the dissipation, the chaotic attractor as well as its basin of attraction are destroyed, thus leading the system to experience a boundary crisis. The transient after the crisis follows a power law with exponent -2.Comment: Chaos, Solitons & Fractals, 201

Valorização agrícola de lamas de origem têxtil

Valorização agrícola de lamas de origem têxtil

Content validation and inter-rater reliability of a protocol for the precision assessment of boccia players

Purpose: To verify a protocol's content validation and reliability for assessing the precision in the throw of Paralympic boccia in two different steps. Methods: The study was divided into two steps: In step 1, the perception of 15 boccia coaches was evaluated using a questionnaire containing 6 questions about the pertinence of the protocol on a Likert scale (1 to 5). In step 2, reliability was evaluated by two researchers, applying the protocol with two targets (0.5 and 1.0, targets) to verify the short precision (SP), average precision (AP), long precision (LP), and total precision (TP) of 23 boccia athletes (BC1 = 5; BC2 = 7; BC3 = 1; BC4 = 10) in tournaments of the modality. The Content Validity Index (CVI) calculation was applied for the electronic questionnaire, the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) for the agreement between evaluators, and the T-Test for the difference between means. p < .05 was adopted. Results: In the result of the CVI, reliability was noticed through the experts' evaluation (Question1 = 1.0; Q2 = 0.93; Q3 = 0.80; Q4 = 0.80; Q5 = 0.93; Q6 = 0.93). There was an agreement between the evaluators by the ICC in the 0.5 targets for SP (p < .01), AP (p < .01), LP (p < .01), and TP (p < .01), and in the 1.0 target for SP (p < .01), AP (p < .01), LP (p < .01), and TP (p < .01). No differences were found between the means in the t-test. Conclusion: It was demonstrated that the protocol meets the established reliability and content validity criteria, allowing its practical use to evaluate the precision in the boccia

Utilização agrícola e compostagem de lamas de origem têxtil

Utilização agrícola e compostagem de lamas de origem têxtil

Probing the Conformational States of Thimet Oligopeptidase in Solution

Thimet oligopeptidase (TOP) is a metallopeptidase involved in the metabolism of oligopeptides inside and outside cells of various tissues. It has been proposed that substrate or inhibitor binding in the TOP active site induces a large hinge‐bending movement leading to a closed structure, in which the bound ligand is enclosed. The main goal of the present work was to study this conformational change, and fluorescence techniques were used. Four active TOP mutants were created, each equipped with a single‐Trp residue (fluorescence donor) and a p‐nitro‐phenylalanine (pNF) residue as fluorescence acceptor at opposite sides of the active site. pNF was biosynthetically incorporated with high efficiency using the amber codon suppression technology. Inhibitor binding induced shorter Donor‐Acceptor (D‐A) distances in all mutants, supporting the view that a hinge-like movement is operative in TOP. The activity of TOP is known to be dependent on the ionic strength of the assay buffer and D‐A distances were measured at different ionic strengths. Interestingly, a correlation between the D‐A distance and the catalytic activity of TOP was observed: the highest activities corresponded to the shortest D‐A distances. In this study for the first time the hinge‐bending motion of a metallopeptidase in solution could be studied, yielding insight about the position of the equilibrium between the open and closed conformation. This information will contribute to a more detailed understanding of the mode of action of these enzymes, including therapeutic targets like neurolysin and angiotensin‐converting enzyme 2 (ACE2)

Patients In The Waiting List Of Bariatric Surgery In The Brazilian Public Sector Treatment Patterns And Health Outcomes: A Non-Interventional Single-Site Retrospective Study

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Reproductive tract development and puberty in two lines of Nellore heifers selected for postweaning weight

AbstractThe objective was to evaluate reproductive tract development (ovary and uterus) and onset of puberty in two lines of Nellore heifers (Bos indicus) selected for postweaning weight. A total of 123 heifers, including 46 from the control Nellore line (NeC) and 77 from the selection Nellore line (NeS) were used. Every 18 to 21 days from 12 to 24 months of age, average ovarian area (OVA), endometrial thickness (ETh), and diameter of the largest follicle in each ovary were evaluated (using transrectal ultrasonography), and body weight, hip height, and body condition score were measured. There were no differences between NeS and NeC heifers for ETh or OVA (P < 0.05). Genetic selection for higher postweaning weight had no negative influence on the onset of puberty, with 52% and 48% of NeC and NeS heifers, respectively, pubertal at 24 months of age (P = 0.49). Heifers that reached puberty at the end of the study were heavier (NeC, 296.9 vs. 276.7 kg; NeS, 343.5 vs. 327.9 kg; P < 0.01) and younger (NeC, 23.4 vs. 24.2 mo; NeS, 22.7 vs. 24.0 months; P < 0.01) than those that did not. Furthermore, heifers that were heavier at weaning reached puberty earlier. Pubertal heifers had a greater OVA (4.15 vs. 3.14 cm2; P < 0.01) and ETh (12.15 vs. 9.93 mm; P < 0.01) than nonpubertal heifers. Taken together, OVA and ETh had positive effects (P < 0.01) on the onset of puberty and were suitable indicator traits of heifer sexual precocity in pasture management systems. However, selection for weight did not alter ovarian or endometrial development, or manifestation of puberty at 24 months of age. Among the growth traits studied, weaning weight and weight at puberty had significant positive effects on manifestation of first estrus

New upper bounds for the density of translative packings of three-dimensional convex bodies with tetrahedral symmetry

In this paper we determine new upper bounds for the maximal density of translative packings of superballs in three dimensions (unit balls for the $l_3^p$-norm) and of Platonic and Archimedean solids having tetrahedral symmetry. These bounds give strong indications that some of the lattice packings of superballs found in 2009 by Jiao, Stillinger, and Torquato are indeed optimal among all translative packings. We improve Zong's recent upper bound for the maximal density of translative packings of regular tetrahedra from $0.3840\ldots$ to $0.3745\ldots$, getting closer to the best known lower bound of $0.3673\ldots$. We apply the linear programming bound of Cohn and Elkies which originally was designed for the classical problem of packings of round spheres. The proofs of our new upper bounds are computational and rigorous. Our main technical contribution is the use of invariant theory of pseudo-reflection groups in polynomial optimization