Controlling Explosive Sensitivity of Energy-Related Materials by Means of Production and Processing in Electromagnetic Fields

The present work is one of the world first attempts to develop effective methods for controlling explosive sensitivity of energy-related materials with the help of weak electric (up to 1 mV/cm) and magnetic (0.001 T) fields. The resulting experimental data can be used for purposeful alternation of explosive materials reactivity, which is of great practical importance. The proposed technology of producing and processing materials in a weak electric field allows forecasting long-term stability of these materials under various energy impacts

Generation and Analysis of Wire Rope Digital Radiographic Images

The paper is dealt with different structures of the digital radiographic system intended for wire rope radiography. The scanning geometry of the wire rope is presented and the main stages of its digital radiographic image generation are identified herein. Correction algorithms are suggested for X-ray beam hardening. A complex internal structure of the wire rope is illustrated by its 25 mm diameter image obtained from X-ray computed tomography. The paper considers the approach to the analysis of digital radiographic image algorithms based on the closeness of certain parameters (invariants) of all unit cross-sections of the reference wire rope or its sections with the length equaling to the lay. The main invariants of wire rope radiographic images are identified and compared with its typical defects

Diphtheria rare localization in adults

Last 25 years in the country established sporadic diphtheria morbidity (less than 0.1 per 100 000 people). In this situation, the attention of medical specialists pre-hospital and hospital health care system is reduced, especially for diseases with a rare localization of pathological process. Mentioned circumstances contribute to delayed diagnosis and treatment of his patients, the major cause of complicated infection, often its unfavorable outcome and a factor of the epidemic of trouble for the infection. The authors present material evidence that the rare forms of diphtheria in the period of sporadic disease in much the same as in the epidemic, and describe the clinical manifestations and course of diphtheria of the nose, eyes, throat, genitals, mouth and gastrointestinal tract in modern conditions

Terahertz superlattice parametric oscillator

We report a GaAs/AlAs superlattice parametric oscillator. It was pumped by a microwave field (power few mW) and produced 3rd harmonic radiation (frequency near 300 GHz). The nonlinearity of the active superlattice was due to Bragg reflections of conduction electrons at the superlattice planes. A theory of the nonlinearity indicates that parametric oscillation should be possible up to frequencies above 10 THz. The active superlattice may be the object of further studies of predicted extraordinary nonlinearities for THz fields.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure

Brownian motion exhibiting absolute negative mobility

We consider a single Brownian particle in a spatially symmetric, periodic system far from thermal equilibrium. This setup can be readily realized experimentally. Upon application of an external static force F, the average particle velocity is negative for F>0 and positive for F<0 (absolute negative mobility).Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, to be published in PR

ДИФТЕРИЯ РЕДКИХ ЛОКАЛИЗАЦИЙ У ВЗРОСЛЫХ

Last 25 years in the country established sporadic diphtheria morbidity (less than 0.1 per 100 000 people). In this situation, the attention of medical specialists pre-hospital and hospital health care system is reduced, especially for diseases with a rare localization of pathological process. Mentioned circumstances contribute to delayed diagnosis and treatment of his patients, the major cause of complicated infection, often its unfavorable outcome and a factor of the epidemic of trouble for the infection. The authors present material evidence that the rare forms of diphtheria in the period of sporadic disease in much the same as in the epidemic, and describe the clinical manifestations and course of diphtheria of the nose, eyes, throat, genitals, mouth and gastrointestinal tract in modern conditions.Последние 25 лет в стране установился спорадический характер заболеваемости населения дифтерией (менее 0,1 на 100 000 человек). В этой ситуации внимание медицинских специалистов догоспитального и госпитального звеньев здравоохранения снижается, особенно к заболеванию с редкими локализациями патологического процесса. Упомянутые обстоятельства способствуют несвоевременной его диагностике и лечению больных, являющихся основной причиной осложненного течения инфекционного процесса, часто неблагоприятного его исхода, а также фактором эпидемического неблагополучия по данной инфекции. Авторы приводят материалы, свидетельствующие, что редкие формы дифтерии в период спорадической заболеваемости практически такие же, как и при эпидемической, а также описывают клинические проявления и течение дифтерии носа, глаз, гортани, половых органов, полости рта и желудочно-кишечного тракта в современных условиях

Influence of boric anhydride upon the physical and chemical properties of ferrosilicon slag

The authors study the influence of boric anhydride upon the physical and chemical properties of slag in the manufacture of ferrosilicon. It is established that adding boric anhydride to the slag changes its refractory quality and its viscosity and eases pouring slag and metal. Slags with optimal composition and properties are described

Quantum dynamics in strong fluctuating fields

A large number of multifaceted quantum transport processes in molecular systems and physical nanosystems can be treated in terms of quantum relaxation processes which couple to one or several fluctuating environments. A thermal equilibrium environment can conveniently be modelled by a thermal bath of harmonic oscillators. An archetype situation provides a two-state dissipative quantum dynamics, commonly known under the label of a spin-boson dynamics. An interesting and nontrivial physical situation emerges, however, when the quantum dynamics evolves far away from thermal equilibrium. This occurs, for example, when a charge transferring medium possesses nonequilibrium degrees of freedom, or when a strong time-dependent control field is applied externally. Accordingly, certain parameters of underlying quantum subsystem acquire stochastic character. Herein, we review the general theoretical framework which is based on the method of projector operators, yielding the quantum master equations for systems that are exposed to strong external fields. This allows one to investigate on a common basis the influence of nonequilibrium fluctuations and periodic electrical fields on quantum transport processes. Most importantly, such strong fluctuating fields induce a whole variety of nonlinear and nonequilibrium phenomena. A characteristic feature of such dynamics is the absence of thermal (quantum) detailed balance.Comment: review article, Advances in Physics (2005), in pres

ДИФФЕРЕНЦИАЛЬНАЯ ДИАГНОСТИКА ДИФТЕРИИ У ВЗРОСЛЫХ

A total of 1,824 human cases of diphtheria, treated at the Clinical Infectious Diseases Hospital SP Botkin (St. Petersburg) during 1993, as well as 19 deaths in 1994. It is known that early diagnosis of infectious diseases, especially diphtheria, contributes to the favorable outcome of the disease. The diagnosis of diphtheria at the prehospital stage is always difficult. Presented in detail the differential diagnosis of the disease, clinically similar to diphtheria: Lacunal angina, angina Simanovsky, infectious mononucleosis, angina Ludwig’s angina Dugue, syphilis, non-infectious with clinical «masks» of diphtheria and other. Diphtheria epidemic of 1993–1994 in Russia and, in particular, in St. Petersburg, showed that the late admission of patients with diphtheria infection in hospitals, usually associated with irregular differential diagnosis of this dangerous disease.Обследовано 1824 человека, больных дифтерией, находившихся на лечении в Клинической инфекционной больнице им. С.П. Боткина (Санкт-Петербург) в течении 1993 г., а также 19 умерших в 1994 г. Известно, что ранняя диагностика инфекционных больных, особенно дифтерии, способствует благоприятному исходу болезни. Диагноз дифтерии на догоспитальном этапе всегда затруднителен. Подробно представлена дифференциальная диагностика с заболеваниями, клинически сходными с дифтерией: ангина лакунарная, ангина Симановского, инфекционный мононуклеоз, ангина Людвига, ангина Дюге, сифилис, неинфекционные с клиническими «масками» дифтерии и прочие. Эпидемия дифтерии 1993–1994 гг. в РФ и, в частности, в Санкт-Петербурге, показала, что поздняя госпитализация больных дифтерией в инфекционные стационары, как правило, связана с неправильной дифференциальной диагностикой этого опасного заболевания

First observations of separated atmospheric nu_mu and bar{nu-mu} events in the MINOS detector

The complete 5.4 kton MINOS far detector has been taking data since the beginning of August 2003 at a depth of 2070 meters water-equivalent in the Soudan mine, Minnesota. This paper presents the first MINOS observations of nuµ and [overline nu ]µ charged-current atmospheric neutrino interactions based on an exposure of 418 days. The ratio of upward- to downward-going events in the data is compared to the Monte Carlo expectation in the absence of neutrino oscillations, giving Rup/downdata/Rup/downMC=0.62-0.14+0.19(stat.)±0.02(sys.). An extended maximum likelihood analysis of the observed L/E distributions excludes the null hypothesis of no neutrino oscillations at the 98% confidence level. Using the curvature of the observed muons in the 1.3 T MINOS magnetic field nuµ and [overline nu ]µ interactions are separated. The ratio of [overline nu ]µ to nuµ events in the data is compared to the Monte Carlo expectation assuming neutrinos and antineutrinos oscillate in the same manner, giving R[overline nu ][sub mu]/nu[sub mu]data/R[overline nu ][sub mu]/nu[sub mu]MC=0.96-0.27+0.38(stat.)±0.15(sys.), where the errors are the statistical and systematic uncertainties. Although the statistics are limited, this is the first direct observation of atmospheric neutrino interactions separately for nuµ and [overline nu ]µ