On the dependence of the Navier Stokes equations on the distribution of moleular velocities

In this work we introduce a completely general Chapman Enskog procedure in which we divide the local distribution into an isotropic distribution with anisotropic corrections. We obtain a recursion relation on all integrals of the distribution function required in the derivation of the moment equations. We obtain the hydrodynamic equations in terms only of the first few moments of the isotropic part of an arbitrary local distribution function. The incompressible limit of the equations is completely independent of the form of the isotropic part of the distribution, whereas the energy equation in the compressible case contains an additional contribution to the heat flux. This additional term was also found by Boghosian and by Potiguar and Costa in the derivation of the Navier Stokes equations for Tsallis thermostatistics, and is the only additional term allowed by the Curie principle

A study of digital camera colorimetric characterisation based on polynomial modelling

The digital camera is a powerful tool to capture images for use in image processing and colour communication. However, the RGB signals generated by a digital camera are device-dependent, i.e. different digital cameras produce different RGB responses for the same scene. Furthermore, they are not colorimetric, i.e. the output RGB signals do not directly correspond to the device-independent tristimulus values based on the CIE standard colorimetric observer. One approach for deriving a colorimetric mapping between camera RGB signals and CIE tristimulus values uses polynomial modelling and is described here. The least-squares fitting technique was used to derive the coefficients of 3× n polynomial transfer matrices yielding a modelling accuracy typically averaging 1 Δ E units in CMC(1:1) when a 3× 11 matrix is used. Experiments were carried out to investigate the repeatability of the digitising system, characterisation performance when different polynomials were used, modelling accuracy when 8-bit and 12-bit RGB data were used for characterisation and the number of reference samples needed to achieve a reasonable degree of modelling accuracy. Choice of characterisation target and media and their effect on metamerism have been examined. It is demonstrated that a model is dependent upon both media and colorant and applying a model to other media/colorants can lead to serious eye-camera metamerism problems

Flavor-Symmetry Restoration and Symanzik Improvement for Staggered Quarks

We resolve contradictions in the literature concerning the origins and size of unphysical flavor-changing strong interactions generated by the staggered-quark discretization of QCD. We show that the leading contributions are tree-level in \order(a^2) and that they can be removed by adding three correction terms to the link operator in the standard action. These corrections are part of the systematic Symanzik improvement of the staggered-quark action. We present a new improved action for staggered quarks that is accurate up to errors of \order(a^4,a^2\alpha_s) --- more accurate than most, if not all, other discretizations of light-quark dynamics.Comment: 7 page

Modulation of hepatitis C virus RNA abundance and virus release by dispersion of processing bodies and enrichment of stress granules

AbstractComponents of cytoplasmic processing bodies (P-bodies) and stress granules can be subverted during viral infections to modulate viral gene expression. Because hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA abundance is regulated by P-body components such as microRNA miR-122, Argonaute 2 and RNA helicase RCK/p54, we examined whether HCV infection modulates P-bodies and stress granules during viral infection. It was discovered that HCV infection decreased the number of P-bodies, but induced the formation of stress granules. Immunofluorescence studies revealed that a number of P-body and stress granule proteins co-localized with viral core protein at lipid droplets, the sites for viral RNA packaging. Depletion of selected P-body proteins decreased overall HCV RNA and virion abundance. Depletion of stress granule proteins also decreased overall HCV RNA abundance, but surprisingly enhanced the accumulation of infectious, extracellular virus. These data argue that HCV subverts P-body and stress granule components to aid in viral gene expression at particular sites in the cytoplasm

Midkine-A functions upstream of Id2a to regulate cell cycle kinetics in the developing vertebrate retina

BACKGROUND: Midkine is a small heparin binding growth factor expressed in numerous tissues during development. The unique midkine gene in mammals has two paralogs in zebrafish: midkine-a (mdka) and midkine-b (mdkb). In the zebrafish retina, during both larval development and adult photoreceptor regeneration, mdka is expressed in retinal stem and progenitor cells and functions as a molecular component of the retina’s stem cell niche. In this study, loss-of-function and conditional overexpression were used to investigate the function of Mdka in the retina of the embryonic zebrafish. RESULTS: The results show that during early retinal development Mdka functions to regulate cell cycle kinetics. Following targeted knockdown of Mdka synthesis, retinal progenitors cycle more slowly, and this results in microphthalmia, a diminished rate of cell cycle exit and a temporal delay of cell cycle exit and neuronal differentiation. In contrast, Mdka overexpression results in acceleration of the cell cycle and retinal overgrowth. Mdka gain-of-function, however, does not temporally advance cell cycle exit. Experiments to identify a potential Mdka signaling pathway show that Mdka functions upstream of the HLH regulatory protein, Id2a. Gene expression analysis shows Mdka regulates id2a expression, and co-injection of Mdka morpholinos and id2a mRNA rescues the Mdka loss-of-function phenotype. CONCLUSIONS: These data show that in zebrafish, Mdka resides in a shared Id2a pathway to regulate cell cycle kinetics in retinal progenitors. This is the first study to demonstrate the function of Midkine during retinal development and adds Midkine to the list of growth factors that transcriptionally regulate Id proteins

Monolithic growth of InAs quantum dots lasers on (001) silicon emitting at 1.55 μm

Broad-area 1.55 μm InAs quantum dots (QDs) lasers were fabricated based on monolithic growth of InAs/InAlGaAs/InP active structures on nano-patterned (001) silicon substrates. Device optoelectronic properties and materials' optical gain and absorption features were studied to provide experimental support for further optimizations in laser design

Heterogeneous formation of polar stratospheric clouds – Part 1: Nucleation of nitric acid trihydrate (NAT)

Satellite-based observations during the Arctic winter of 2009/2010 provide firm evidence that, in contrast to the current understanding, the nucleation of nitric acid trihydrate (NAT) in the polar stratosphere does not only occur on preexisting ice particles. In order to explain the NAT clouds observed over the Arctic in mid-December 2009, a heterogeneous nucleation mechanism is required, occurring via immersion freezing on the surface of solid particles, likely of meteoritic origin. For the first time, a detailed microphysical modelling of this NAT formation pathway has been carried out. Heterogeneous NAT formation was calculated along more than sixty thousand trajectories, ending at Cloud Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) observation points. Comparing the optical properties of the modelled NAT with these observations enabled a thorough validation of a newly developed NAT nucleation parameterisation, which has been built into the Zurich Optical and Microphysical box Model (ZOMM). The parameterisation is based on active site theory, is simple to implement in models and provides substantial advantages over previous approaches which involved a constant rate of NAT nucleation in a given volume of air. It is shown that the new method is capable of reproducing observed polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) very well, despite the varied conditions experienced by air parcels travelling along the different trajectories. In a companion paper, ZOMM is applied to a later period of the winter, when ice PSCs are also present, and it is shown that the observed PSCs are also represented extremely well under these conditions

Further constraints on electron acceleration in solar noise storms

We reexamine the energetics of nonthermal electron acceleration in solar noise storms. A new result is obtained for the minimum nonthermal electron number density required to produce a Langmuir wave population of sufficient intensity to power the noise storm emission. We combine this constraint with the stochastic electron acceleration formalism developed by Subramanian & Becker (2005) to derive a rigorous estimate for the efficiency of the overall noise storm emission process, beginning with nonthermal electron acceleration and culminating in the observed radiation. We also calculate separate efficiencies for the electron acceleration -- Langmuir wave generation stage and the Langmuir wave -- noise storm production stage. In addition, we obtain a new theoretical estimate for the energy density of the Langmuir waves in noise storm continuum sources.Comment: Accepted for publication in Solar Physic