224 research outputs found
The history force on a small particle in a linearly stratified fluid
The hydrodynamic force experienced by a small spherical particle undergoing
an arbitrary time-dependent motion in a density-stratified fluid is
investigated theoretically. The study is carried out under the
Oberbeck-Boussinesq approximation, and in the limit of small Reynolds and small
P\'eclet numbers. The force acting on the particle is obtained by using matched
asymptotic expansions in which the small parameter is given by a/l where a is
the particle radius and l is the stratification length defined by Ardekani &
Stocker (2010), which depends on the Brunt-Vaisala frequency, on the fluid
kinematic viscosity and on the thermal or the concentration diffusivity
(depending on the case considered). The matching procedure used here, which is
based on series expansions of generalized functions, slightly differs from that
generally used in similar problems. In addition to the classical Stokes drag,
it is found the particle experiences a memory force given by two convolution
products, one of which involves, as usual, the particle acceleration and the
other one, the particle velocity. Owing to the stratification, the transient
behaviour of this memory force, in response to an abrupt motion, consists of an
initial fast decrease followed by a damped oscillation with an
angular-frequency corresponding to the Brunt-Vaisala frequency. The
perturbation force eventually tends to a constant which provides us with
correction terms that should be added to the Stokes drag to accurately predict
the settling time of a particle in a diffusive stratified-fluid.Comment: 16 page
Development of methods and electronic circuits for ultrasound imaging based on innovative probes
The INOVE ANR 2010 Blan 0308 project: Integrated approach for observation and control of vehicle dynamics
International audienceThis paper presents the INOVE "Integrated approach for observation and control of vehicle dynamics" project. The aim and organization of the project are described and we present some recent results on the proposed integrated approach to design new methodologies for the improvement of the vehicle dynamical behaviour
Discriminatory power of different arthropod data sets for the biological monitoring of anthropogenic disturbance in tropical forests
Relative contributions of prenatal complications, perinatal characteristics, neonatal morbidities and socio-economic conditions of preterm infants on the occurrence of developmental disorders up to 7âyears of age
Background: To investigate the relative contributions of prenatal complications, perinatal characteristics, neonatal morbidities and socio-economic conditions on the occurrence of motor, sensory, cognitive, language and psychological disorders in a large longitudinal preterm infant population during the first 7âyears after birth.
Methods: The study population comprised 4122 infants born at <35âweeks of gestation who were followed for an average of 74.0âmonths after birth. Developmental disorders, including motor, sensory, cognitive, language and psychological, were assessed at each follow-up visit from 18âmonths to 7âyears of age. The investigated determinants included prenatal complications (prolonged rupture of membranes >24âhours, intrauterine growth restriction, preterm labour and maternal hypertension), perinatal characteristics (gender, multiple pregnancies, gestational age, birth weight, APGAR score and intubation or ventilation in the delivery room), neonatal complications (low weight gain during hospitalization, respiratory assistance, severe neurological anomalies, nosocomial infections) and socio-economic characteristics (socio-economic level, parental separation, urbanicity). Based on hazard ratios determined using a propensity score matching approach, population-attributable fractions (PAF) were calculated for each of the four types of determinants and for each developmental disorder.
Results: The percentages of motor, sensory, cognitive, language and psychological disorders were 17.0, 13.4, 29.1, 25.9 and 26.1%, respectively. The PAF for the perinatal characteristics were the highest and they were similar for the different developmental disorders considered (around 60%). For the neonatal and socio-economic determinants, the PAF varied according to the disorder, with contributions of up to 17% for motor and 27% for language disorders, respectively. Finally, prenatal complications had the lowest contributions (between 6 and 13%).
Conclusions: This study illustrates the heterogeneity of risk factors on the risk of developmental disorder in preterm infants. These results suggest the importance of considering both medical and psycho-social follow-ups of preterm infants and their families
Beyond PrPres Type 1/Type 2 Dichotomy in Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease
Sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) cases are currently subclassified according to the methionine/valine polymorphism at codon 129 of the PRNP gene and the proteinase K (PK) digested abnormal prion protein (PrPres) identified on Western blotting (type 1 or type 2). These biochemically distinct PrPres types have been considered to represent potential distinct prion strains. However, since cases of CJD show co-occurrence of type 1 and type 2 PrPres in the brain, the basis of this classification system and its relationship to agent strain are under discussion. Different brain areas from 41 sCJD and 12 iatrogenic CJD (iCJD) cases were investigated, using Western blotting for PrPres and two other biochemical assays reflecting the behaviour of the disease-associated form of the prion protein (PrPSc) under variable PK digestion conditions. In 30% of cases, both type 1 and type 2 PrPres were identified. Despite this, the other two biochemical assays found that PrPSc from an individual patient demonstrated uniform biochemical properties. Moreover, in sCJD, four distinct biochemical PrPSc subgroups were identified that correlated with the current sCJD clinico-pathological classification. In iCJD, four similar biochemical clusters were observed, but these did not correlate to any particular PRNP 129 polymorphism or western blot PrPres pattern. The identification of four different PrPSc biochemical subgroups in sCJD and iCJD, irrespective of the PRNP polymorphism at codon 129 and the PrPres isoform provides an alternative biochemical definition of PrPSc diversity and new insight in the perception of Human TSE agents variability
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