14,307 research outputs found
A critical analysis of prognostic factors for survival in intermediate and high grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Scotland and Newcastle Lymphoma Group Therapy Working Party
Anisotropic diffusion limited aggregation in three dimensions : universality and nonuniversality
We explore the macroscopic consequences of lattice anisotropy for diffusion limited aggregation (DLA) in three dimensions. Simple cubic and bcc lattice growths are shown to approach universal asymptotic states in a coherent fashion, and the approach is accelerated by the use of noise reduction. These states are strikingly anisotropic dendrites with a rich hierarchy of structure. For growth on an fcc lattice, our data suggest at least two stable fixed points of anisotropy, one matching the bcc case. Hexagonal growths, favoring six planar and two polar directions, appear to approach a line of asymptotic states with continuously tunable polar anisotropy. The more planar of these growths visually resembles real snowflake morphologies. Our simulations use a new and dimension-independent implementation of the DLA model. The algorithm maintains a hierarchy of sphere coverings of the growth, supporting efficient random walks onto the growth by spherical moves. Anisotropy was introduced by restricting growth to certain preferred directions
The Orbital Period of the Be/Neutron Star Binary RX J0812.4-3114
We present the results of Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer observations of the Be
star X-ray binary system RX J0812.4-3114. A light curve obtained with the RXTE
All-Sky Monitor shows that the source is currently in an active state with
outbursts occurring at approximately 80 day intervals. The source underwent a
transition from an inactive state to this regular outburst state early in 1998.
An observation of RX J0812.4-3114 was obtained with the RXTE Proportional
Counter Array close to the time of a predicted maximum in March 1999 and strong
pulsations were detected at a period of 31.88 seconds. This confirms the result
of an earlier PCA observation by Reig & Roche which was serendipitously also
obtained near the predicted maximum flux of the 80 day period and also near the
start of the current active state. We interpret the periodicity in the ASM
light curve as indicating the orbital period of RX J0812.4-3114 with outbursts
occurring around periastron passage
Search for the Tunguska event in the Antarctic snow
The Tunguska explosion in 1908 is supposed to have been produced by the impact of a small celestial body. The absence of any identifiable crater together with the huge energy released by the event suggest that the impactor exploded in midair and that its material was widely spread over the Earth. The short term contribution of such exceptional events to the total accretion rate of extraterrestrial material by the Earth could be significant. Samples were chosen in a core electromechanically drilled in 1984 near South Pole Station. There, the low temperatures, preventing melting all year long, and the nearly regular snow fall rate provide good conditions for a reliable continuous record of any infalling material. In many samples Ir was below the detection limit of the instrumentation. The iridium infall averaged over 45 samples is given. In a few samples the iridium content is significantly higher than the average: the frequency and amplitude of such fluctuations can be explained by the presence on some filters of finite size cosmic particles. No significant systematic increase above the average level is observed in the part of the core corresponding to the Tunguska event. The two major results of this study are: (1) The presence of Tunguska explosion debris in the Antarctic snow is not confirmed; and (2) The estimate of the average iridium infall, is an order of magnitude lower than the Ganapathy's background but is close to the values measured in Antarctic snow and atmospheric samples by Takahashi et al. The results are also consistent with the flux of micrometeoroids deduced from optical and radar observations or derived from the study of Greenland cosmic dust collection but are lower than the flux at mid-latitude measured in paleocene-oligocene sediments from the central part of the Pacific Ocean
Mechanisms for Lasing with Cold Atoms as the Gain Medium
We realize a laser with a cloud of cold rubidium atoms as gain medium, placed
in a low-finesse cavity. Three different regimes of laser emission are observed
corresponding respectively to Mollow, Raman and Four Wave Mixing mechanisms. We
measure an output power of up to 300 W and present the main properties of
these different lasers in each regime
A practice-led approach to facial animation research
In facial expression research, it is well established that certain emotional expressions are universally recognized. Studies into the observer perception of dynamic expressions have built upon this research by highlighting the importance of particular facial regions, timings, and temporal configurations to perception and interpretation. In many studies, the stimuli for such studies have been generated through posing by non-experts or performances by trained actors. However, skilled character animators are capable of crafting recognizable, believable emotional facial expressions as a part of their professional practice. ‘Emotional Avatars’ was conceived as an interdisciplinary research project which would draw upon the knowledge of animation practice and emotional psychology. The aim of the project was to jointly investigate the artistic generation and observer perception of emotional expression animation to determine whether the nuances of emotional facial expression could be artistically choreographed to enhance audience interpretation
Searching for tidal tails around Centauri using RR Lyrae Stars
We present a survey for RR Lyrae stars in an area of 50 deg around the
globular cluster Centauri, aimed to detect debris material from the
alleged progenitor galaxy of the cluster. We detected 48 RR Lyrae stars of
which only 11 have been previously reported. Ten among the eleven previously
known stars were found inside the tidal radius of the cluster. The rest were
located outside the tidal radius up to distances of degrees from the
center of the cluster. Several of those stars are located at distances similar
to that of Centauri. We investigated the probability that those stars
may have been stripped off the cluster by studying their properties (mean
periods), calculating the expected halo/thick disk population of RR Lyrae stars
in this part of the sky, analyzing the radial velocity of a sub-sample of the
RR Lyrae stars, and finally, studying the probable orbits of this sub-sample
around the Galaxy. None of these investigations support the scenario that there
is significant tidal debris around Centauri, confirming previous
studies in the region. It is puzzling that tidal debris have been found
elsewhere but not near the cluster itself.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures, Accepte
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