46,053 research outputs found
EUVE/XTE orbit decay study
The Explorer Platform (EP) program currently comprises two missions, the Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer (EUVE) and the X-ray Timing Explorer (XTE), each of which consists of a scientific payload mounted to the EP. The EP has no orbit maintenance capability. The EP with the EUVE payload will be launched first. At the end of the EUVE mission, the spacecraft will be serviced by the Space Transportation System (STS), and the EUVE instrument will be exchanged for the XTE. The XTE mission will continue until reentry or reservicing by the STS. Because the missions will be using the EP sequentially, the orbit requirements are unusually constrained by orbit decay rates. The initial altitude must be selected so that, by the end of the EUVE mission (2.5 years), the spacecraft will have decayed to an altitude within the STS capabilities. In addition, the payload exchange must occur at an altitude that ensures meeting the minimum XTE mission lifetime (3 years) because no STS reboost will be available. Studies were performed using the Goddard Mission Analysis System to estimate the effects of mass, cross-sectional area, and solar flux on the fulfillment of mission requirements. In addition to results from these studies, conclusions are presented as to the accuracy of the Marshall Space Flight Center solar flux predictions
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Apnea, bradycardia and desaturation spells in premature infants: impact of a protocol for the duration of 'spell-free' observation on interprovider variability and readmission rates.
ObjectiveTo study the impact of implementing a protocol to standardize the duration of observation in preterm infants with apnea/bradycardia/desaturation spells before hospital discharge on length of stay (LOS) and readmission rates.Study designA protocol to standardize the duration of in-hospital observation for preterm infants with apnea, bradycardia and desaturation spells who were otherwise ready for discharge was implemented in December 2013. We evaluated the impact of this protocol on the LOS and readmission rates of very low birth weight infants (VLBW). Data on readmission for apnea and an apparent life-threatening event (ALTE) within 30 days of discharge were collected. The pre-implementation epoch (2011 to 2013) was compared to the post-implementation period (2014 to 2016).ResultsThere were 426 and 368 VLBW discharges before and after initiation of the protocol during 2011 to 2013 and 2014 to 2016, respectively. The LOS did not change with protocol implementation (66±42 vs 64±42 days before and after implementation of the protocol, respectively). Interprovider variability on the duration of observation for apneic spells (F-8.8, P=0.04) and bradycardia spells (F-17.4, P<0.001) decreased after implementation of the protocol. The readmission rate for apnea/ALTE after the protocol decreased from 12.1 to 3.4% (P=0.01).ConclusionImplementing an institutional protocol for VLBW infants to determine the duration of apnea/bradycardia/ desaturation spell-free observation period as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics clinical report did not prolong the LOS but effectively reduced interprovider variability and readmission rates
The Texas construction sector: the tail that wagged the dog
The boom-to-bust days of the Texas construction industry will linger in people's memory for many years. D'Ann Petersen, Keith Phillips, and Mine Yucel examine the factors that led to the rise and fall of the Texas construction industry and determine the role the industry played in the state's volatile economy during the 1970s and 1980s. ; Petersen, Phillips, and Yucel employ an econometric model to analyze the roles residential and nonresidential construction played in the state's economic fluctuations from 1976 through 1990. The authors find that, although large swings in oil prices were the greatest source of economic instability in the Texas economy, the construction sector also played an important and independent role in the changing fortunes of the state. The authors' results show that the homebuilding sector, in particular, had a large impact on the Texas economy. In addition, the authors find that the state's economy needs several years to adjust to shocks in the construction industry. Consequently, the current expansion in residential construction is likely to have positive economic effects in the years ahead.Construction industry ; Texas
Algorithm and Complexity for a Network Assortativity Measure
We show that finding a graph realization with the minimum Randi\'c index for
a given degree sequence is solvable in polynomial time by formulating the
problem as a minimum weight perfect b-matching problem. However, the
realization found via this reduction is not guaranteed to be connected.
Approximating the minimum weight b-matching problem subject to a connectivity
constraint is shown to be NP-Hard. For instances in which the optimal solution
to the minimum Randi\'c index problem is not connected, we describe a heuristic
to connect the graph using pairwise edge exchanges that preserves the degree
sequence. In our computational experiments, the heuristic performs well and the
Randi\'c index of the realization after our heuristic is within 3% of the
unconstrained optimal value on average. Although we focus on minimizing the
Randi\'c index, our results extend to maximizing the Randi\'c index as well.
Applications of the Randi\'c index to synchronization of neuronal networks
controlling respiration in mammals and to normalizing cortical thickness
networks in diagnosing individuals with dementia are provided.Comment: Added additional section on application
Sterilization of liquids by filtration and certification of probability
Sterilization of liquids by hydrosol filtratio
Enhancement of Persistent Current in Metal Rings by Correlated Disorder
We study analytically the effect of a correlated random potential on the
persistent current in a one-dimensional ring threaded by a magnetic flux
, using an Anderson tight-binding model. In our model, the system of
atomic sites of the ring is assumed to be partitioned into pairs of
identical nearest-neighbour sites (dimers). The site energies for different
dimers are taken to be uncorrelated gaussian variables. For this system we
obtain the exact flux-dependent energy levels to second order in the random
site energies, using an earlier exact transfer matrix perturbation theory.
These results are used to study the mean persistent current generated by
spinless electrons occupying the lowest levels of the
flux-dependent energy band at zero temperature. Detailed analyses are carried
out in the limit and for a half-filled band (), for
magnetic fluxes . While the uncorrelated disorder leads
to a reduction of the persistent current, the disorder correlation acts to
enhance it. In particular, in the half-filled band case the correlated disorder
leads to a global flux-dependent enhancement of persistent current which has
the same form for even and odd . At low filling of the energy band the
effect of the disorder on the persistent current is found to depend on the
parity of : the correlated disorder yields a reduction of the current for
odd and an enhancement of the current for even .Comment: 1
The effect of genome length on ejection forces in bacteriophage lambda
A variety of viruses tightly pack their genetic material into protein capsids
that are barely large enough to enclose the genome. In particular, in
bacteriophages, forces as high as 60 pN are encountered during packaging and
ejection, produced by DNA bending elasticity and self-interactions. The high
forces are believed to be important for the ejection process, though the extent
of their involvement is not yet clear. As a result, there is a need for
quantitative models and experiments that reveal the nature of the forces
relevant to DNA ejection. Here we report measurements of the ejection forces
for two different mutants of bacteriophage lambda, lambda b221cI26 and lambda
cI60, which differ in genome length by ~30%. As expected for a force-driven
ejection mechanism, the osmotic pressure at which DNA release is completely
inhibited varies with the genome length: we find inhibition pressures of 15 atm
and 25 atm, respectively, values that are in agreement with our theoretical
calculations
A Physical Model for SN 2001ay, a normal, bright, extremely slowly declining Type Ia supernova
We present a study of the peculiar Type Ia supernova 2001ay (SN 2001ay). The
defining features of its peculiarity are: high velocity, broad lines, and a
fast rising light curve, combined with the slowest known rate of decline. It is
one magnitude dimmer than would be predicted from its observed value of
Delta-m15, and shows broad spectral features. We base our analysis on detailed
calculations for the explosion, light curves, and spectra. We demonstrate that
consistency is key for both validating the models and probing the underlying
physics. We show that this SN can be understood within the physics underlying
the Delta-m15 relation, and in the framework of pulsating delayed detonation
models originating from a Chandrasekhar mass, white dwarf, but with a
progenitor core composed of 80% carbon. We suggest a possible scenario for
stellar evolution which leads to such a progenitor. We show that the unusual
light curve decline can be understood with the same physics as has been used to
understand the Delta-m15 relation for normal SNe Ia. The decline relation can
be explained by a combination of the temperature dependence of the opacity and
excess or deficit of the peak luminosity, alpha, measured relative to the
instantaneous rate of radiative decay energy generation. What differentiates SN
2001ay from normal SNe Ia is a higher explosion energy which leads to a shift
of the Ni56 distribution towards higher velocity and alpha < 1. This result is
responsible for the fast rise and slow decline. We define a class of SN
2001ay-like SNe Ia, which will show an anti-Phillips relation.Comment: 35 pages, 14 figures, ApJ, in pres
Magnetothermal transport in the spin-1/2 chains of copper pyrazine dinitrate
We present experiments on the thermal transport in the spin-1/2 chain
compound copper pyrazine dinitrate Cu(C_4 H_4 N_2)(NO_3)_2. The heat
conductivity shows a surprisingly strong dependence on the applied magnetic
field B, characterized at low temperatures by two main features. The first one
appearing at low B is a characteristic dip located at mu_B B ~ k_B T, that may
arise from Umklapp scattering. The second one is a plateau-like feature in the
quantum critical regime, mu_B |B-B_c| < k_B T, where B_c is the saturation
field at T=0. The latter feature clearly points towards a momentum and field
independent mean free path of the spin excitations, contrary to theoretical
expectations.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
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