3,723 research outputs found
Impact of densitized lapse slicings on evolutions of a wobbling black hole
We present long-term stable and second-order convergent evolutions of an
excised wobbling black hole. Our results clearly demonstrate that the use of a
densitized lapse function extends the lifetime of simulations dramatically. We
also show the improvement in the stability of single static black holes when an
algebraic densitized lapse condition is applied. In addition, we introduce a
computationally inexpensive approach for tracking the location of the
singularity suitable for mildly distorted black holes. The method is based on
investigating the fall-off behavior and asymmetry of appropriate grid
variables. This simple tracking method allows one to adjust the location of the
excision region to follow the coordinate motion of the singularity.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figure
Evolution of magnetic properties in the normal spinel solid solution Mg(1-x)Cu(x)Cr2O4
We examine the evolution of magnetic properties in the normal spinel oxides
Mg(1-x)Cu(x)Cr2O4 using magnetization and heat capacity measurements. The
end-member compounds of the solid solution series have been studied in some
detail because of their very interesting magnetic behavior. MgCr2O4 is a highly
frustrated system that undergoes a first order structural transition at its
antiferromagnetic ordering temperature. CuCr2O4 is tetragonal at room
temperature as a result of Jahn-Teller active tetrahedral Cu^2+ and undergoes a
magnetic transition at 135 K. Substitution of magnetic cations for diamagnetic
Mg^2+ on the tetrahedral A site in the compositional series Mg(1-x)Cu(x)Cr2O4
dramatically affects magnetic behavior. In the composition range 0 < x < 0.3,
the compounds are antiferromagnetic. A sharp peak observed at 12.5K in the heat
capacity of MgCr2O4 corresponding to a magnetically driven first order
structural transition is suppressed even for small x suggesting glassy
disorder. Uncompensated magnetism - with open magnetization loops - develops
for samples in the x range 0.43 < x < 1. Multiple magnetic ordering
temperatures and large coercive fields emerge in the intermediate composition
range 0.43 < x < 0.47. The Neel temperature increases with increasing x across
the series while the value of the Curie-Weiss Theta decreases. A magnetic
temperature-composition phase diagram of the solid solution series is
presented
News discourses on distant suffering: A critical discourse analysis of the 2003 SARS outbreak
News carries a unique signifying power, a power to represent events in particular ways (Fairclough, 1995). Applying Critical Discourse Analysis and Chouliaraki's theory on the mediation of suffering (2006), this article explores the news representation of the 2003 global SARS outbreak. Following a case-based methodology, we investigate how two Belgian television stations have covered the international outbreak of SARS. By looking into the mediation of four selected discursive moments, underlying discourses of power, hierarchy and compassion were unraveled. The analysis further identified the key role of proximity in international news reporting and supports the claim that Western news media mainly reproduce a Euro-American centered world order. This article argues that news coverage of international crises such as SARS constructs and maintains the socio-cultural difference between 'us' and 'them' as well as articulating global power hierarchies and a division of the world in zones of poverty and prosperity, danger and safety
Initial data for Einstein's equations with superposed gravitational waves
A method is presented to construct initial data for Einstein's equations as a
superposition of a gravitational wave perturbation on an arbitrary stationary
background spacetime. The method combines the conformal thin sandwich formalism
with linear gravitational waves, and allows detailed control over
characteristics of the superposed gravitational wave like shape, location and
propagation direction. It is furthermore fully covariant with respect to
spatial coordinate changes and allows for very large amplitude of the
gravitational wave.Comment: Version accepted by PRD; added convergence plots, expanded
discussion. 9 pages, 9 figure
Toward a dynamical shift condition for unequal mass black hole binary simulations
Moving puncture simulations of black hole binaries rely on a specific gauge
choice that leads to approximately stationary coordinates near each black hole.
Part of the shift condition is a damping parameter, which has to be properly
chosen for stable evolutions. However, a constant damping parameter does not
account for the difference in mass in unequal mass binaries. We introduce a
position dependent shift damping that addresses this problem. Although the
coordinates change, the changes in the extracted gravitational waves are small.Comment: 15 pages, submitted to CQG for NRDA 2009 conference proceeding
Momentum constraint relaxation
Full relativistic simulations in three dimensions invariably develop runaway
modes that grow exponentially and are accompanied by violations of the
Hamiltonian and momentum constraints. Recently, we introduced a numerical
method (Hamiltonian relaxation) that greatly reduces the Hamiltonian constraint
violation and helps improve the quality of the numerical model. We present here
a method that controls the violation of the momentum constraint. The method is
based on the addition of a longitudinal component to the traceless extrinsic
curvature generated by a vector potential w_i, as outlined by York. The
components of w_i are relaxed to solve approximately the momentum constraint
equations, pushing slowly the evolution toward the space of solutions of the
constraint equations. We test this method with simulations of binary neutron
stars in circular orbits and show that effectively controls the growth of the
aforementioned violations. We also show that a full numerical enforcement of
the constraints, as opposed to the gentle correction of the momentum relaxation
scheme, results in the development of instabilities that stop the runs shortly.Comment: 17 pages, 10 figures. New numerical tests and references added. More
detailed description of the algorithms are provided. Final published versio
Exploring Protein-Protein Interactions as Drug Targets for Anti-cancer Therapy with In Silico Workflows
We describe a computational protocol to aid the design of small molecule and peptide drugs that target protein-protein interactions, particularly for anti-cancer therapy. To achieve this goal, we explore multiple strategies, including finding binding hot spots, incorporating chemical similarity and bioactivity data, and sampling similar binding sites from homologous protein complexes. We demonstrate how to combine existing interdisciplinary resources with examples of semi-automated workflows. Finally, we discuss several major problems, including the occurrence of drug-resistant mutations, drug promiscuity, and the design of dual-effect inhibitors.Fil: Goncearenco, Alexander. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Li, Minghui. Soochow University; China. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Simonetti, Franco Lucio. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Oficina de CoordinaciĂłn Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigaciones BioquĂmicas de Buenos Aires. FundaciĂłn Instituto Leloir. Instituto de Investigaciones BioquĂmicas de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Shoemaker, Benjamin A. National Institutes of Health; Estados UnidosFil: Panchenko, Anna R. National Institutes of Health; Estados Unido
Polytetrahedral Clusters
By studying the structures of clusters bound by a model potential that
favours polytetrahedral order, we find a previously unknown series of `magic
numbers' (i.e. sizes of special stability) whose polytetrahedral structures are
characterized by disclination networks that are analogous to hydrocarbons.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Properties of Accretion Flows Around Coalescing Supermassive Black Holes
What are the properties of accretion flows in the vicinity of coalescing
supermassive black holes (SBHs)? The answer to this question has direct
implications for the feasibility of coincident detections of electromagnetic
(EM) and gravitational wave (GW) signals from coalescences. Such detections are
considered to be the next observational grand challenge that will enable
testing general relativity in the strong, nonlinear regime and improve our
understanding of evolution and growth of these massive compact objects. In this
paper we review the properties of the environment of coalescing binaries in the
context of the circumbinary disk and hot, radiatively inefficient accretion
flow models and use them to mark the extent of the parameter space spanned by
this problem. We report the results from an ongoing, general relativistic,
hydrodynamical study of the inspiral and merger of black holes, motivated by
the latter scenario. We find that correlated EM+GW oscillations can arise
during the inspiral phase followed by the gradual rise and subsequent drop-off
in the light curve at the time of coalescence. While there are indications that
the latter EM signature is a more robust one, a detection of either signal
coincidentally with GWs would be a convincing evidence for an impending SBH
binary coalescence. The observability of an EM counterpart in the hot accretion
flow scenario depends on the details of a model. In the case of the most
massive binaries observable by the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna, upper
limits on luminosity imply that they may be identified by EM searches out to
z~0.1-1. However, given the radiatively inefficient nature of the gas flow, we
speculate that a majority of massive binaries may appear as low luminosity AGN
in the local universe.Comment: Revised version accepted to Class. Quantum Grav. for proceedings of
8th LISA Symposium. 15 pages, 3 figures, includes changes suggested in
referee report
Gravitational perturbations of Schwarzschild spacetime at null infinity and the hyperboloidal initial value problem
We study gravitational perturbations of Schwarzschild spacetime by solving a
hyperboloidal initial value problem for the Bardeen-Press equation.
Compactification along hyperboloidal surfaces in a scri-fixing gauge allows us
to have access to the gravitational waveform at null infinity in a general
setup. We argue that this hyperboloidal approach leads to a more accurate and
efficient calculation of the radiation signal than the common approach where a
timelike outer boundary is introduced. The method can be generalized to study
perturbations of Kerr spacetime using the Teukolsky equation.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figure
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