12,617 research outputs found
The evidence of quasi-free positronium state in GiPS-AMOC spectra of glycerol
We present the results of processing of Age-Momentum Correlation (AMOC)
spectra that were measured for glycerol by the Gamma-induced positron
spectroscopy (GiPS) facility. Our research has shown that the shape of
experimental s(t) curve cannot be explained without introduction of the
intermediate state of positronium (Ps), called quasi-free Ps. This state yields
the wide Doppler line near zero lifetimes. We discuss the possible properties
of this intermediate Ps state from the viewpoint of developed model. The amount
of annihilation events produced by quasi-free Ps is estimated to be less than
5% of total annihilations. In the proposed model, quasi-free Ps serves as a
precursor for trapped Ps of para- and ortho-states
Measurement of the Casimir force between dissimilar metals
The first precise measurement of the Casimir force between dissimilar metals
is reported. The attractive force, between a Cu layer evaporated on a
microelectromechanical torsional oscillator, and an Au layer deposited on an
AlO sphere, was measured dynamically with a noise level of 6
fN/. Measurements were performed for separations in the 0.2-2
m range. The results agree to better than 1% in the 0.2-0.5 m range
with a theoretical model that takes into account the finite conductivity and
roughness of the two metals. The observed discrepancies, which are much larger
than the experimental precision, can be attributed to a lack of a complete
characterization of the optical properties of the specific samples used in the
experiment.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure
First measurement of gravitational lensing by cosmic voids in SDSS
We report the first measurement of the diminutive lensing signal arising from
matter underdensities associated with cosmic voids. While undetectable
individually, by stacking the weak gravitational shear estimates around 901
voids detected in SDSS DR7 by Sutter et al. (2012a), we find substantial
evidence for a depression of the lensing signal compared to the cosmic mean.
This depression is most pronounced at the void radius, in agreement with
analytical models of void matter profiles. Even with the largest void sample
and imaging survey available today, we cannot put useful constraints on the
radial dark-matter void profile. We invite independent investigations of our
findings by releasing data and analysis code to the public at
https://github.com/pmelchior/void-lensingComment: 6 pages, 5 figures, as accepted by MNRA
Precise comparison of theory and new experiment for the Casimir force leads to stronger constraints on thermal quantum effects and long-range interactions
We report an improved dynamic determination of the Casimir pressure between
two plane plates obtained using a micromachined torsional oscillator. The main
improvements in the current experiment are a significant suppression of the
surface roughness of the Au layers deposited on the interacting surfaces, and a
decrease in the experimental error in the measurement of the absolute
separation. A metrological analysis of all data permitted us to determine both
the random and systematic errors, and to find the total experimental error as a
function of separation at the 95% confidence level. In contrast to all previous
experiments on the Casimir effect, our smallest experimental error (%) is achieved over a wide separation range. The theoretical Casimir
pressures in the experimental configuration were calculated by the use of four
theoretical approaches suggested in the literature. All corrections to the
Casimir force were calculated or estimated. All theoretical errors were
analyzed and combined to obtain the total theoretical error at the 95%
confidence level. Finally, the confidence interval for the differences between
theoretical and experimental pressures was obtained as a function of
separation. Our measurements are found to be consistent with two theoretical
approaches utilizing the plasma model and the surface impedance over the entire
measurement region. Two other approaches to the thermal Casimir force,
utilizing the Drude model or a special prescription for the determination of
the zero-frequency contribution to the Lifshitz formula, are excluded on the
basis of our measurements at the 99% and 95% confidence levels, respectively.
Finally, constraints on Yukawa-type hypothetical interactions are strengthened
by up to a factor of 20 in a wide interaction range.Comment: 43 pages, 15 figures, elsart.cls is used. Accepted for publication in
Annals of Physics. (Several misprints in the text are corrected.
Comment on "Anomalies in electrostatic calibration for the measurement of the Casimir force in a sphere-plane geometry"
Recently W. J. Kim, M. Brown-Hayes, D. A. R. Dalvit, J. H. Brownell, and R.
Onofrio [Phys. Rev. A, v.78, 036102(R) (2008)] performed electrostatic
calibrations for a plane plate above a centimeter-size spherical lens at
separations down to 20-30 nm and observed "anomalous behavior". It was found
that the gradient of the electrostatic force does not depend on separation as
predicted on the basis of a pure Coulombian contribution. Some hypotheses which
could potentially explain the deviation from the expected behavior were
considered, and qualitative arguments in favor of the influence of patch
surface potentials were presented. We demonstrate that for the large lenses at
separations of a few tens nanometers from the plate, the electrostatic force
law used by the authors is not applicable due to possible deviations of the
mechanically polished and ground lens surface from a perfect spherical shape. A
model is proposed which explains the observed "anomalous behavior" using the
standard Coulombian force.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure
The Enamel Ultrastructure of Multituberculate Mammals: A Review
The enamel ultrastructure of multituberculate mammals has been sampled extensively and studied intensively and is better known than for any other group of early mammals. The enamel of the earliest multituberculates, those of the Late Triassic-Early Jurassic suborder Haramiyoidea and the Late Jurassic-early Early Cretaceous suborder Plagiaulacoidea, is preprismatic. With only two exceptions, all Late Cretaceous and early Tertiary genera of multituberculates examined have prismatic enamel. Prisms are either small with circular (complete) boundaries or large with arc-shaped (incomplete) boundaries. There is a remarkably consistent relationship between enamel ultrastructural type and subordinal taxa in that small, circular prisms are usually found within the suborder Ptilodontoidea and large, arc-shaped prisms are usually found in the suborder Taeniolabidoidea and in six Late Cretaceous-Early Tertiary genera of indeterminate subordinal status.
Research currently in progress suggests that both small, circular prisms and large, arc-shaped prisms are homologous in all multituberculates in which they occur, with one exception. Neoliotomus, a taeniolabidoid, appears to have evolved small, circular prisms independently. In addition, it appears that large, arc-shaped prisms represent the primitive condition in multituberculates with prismatic enamel, not small, circular prisms as has been proposed previously
Linkages Between the Phenologies of Jack Pine \u3ci\u3e(Pinus Banksiana)\u3c/i\u3e Foliage and Jack Pine Budworm (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae)
A field study conducted in 2001 and 2002 in the Michigan Upper Peninsula investigated seasonal associations between the development of jack pine, Pinus banksiana Lamb., and larvae of the jack pine budworm Choristoneura pinus Freeman (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). There was almost no active relationship between post-diapause emerging second instars and elongation of vegetative shoots. Early instars were not closely synchronized with the flushing of current-year needle fascicles, which is required to optimize larval feeding. How- ever, there were close feeding and shelter relationships between early instars and year-2 pollen cone development. Associations with, and larval damage to, year-2 seed cones were dependent upon larval population size and posed only minimal and periodic threats to jack pine seed production. As a consequence, early instar jack pine budworm relied almost exclusively on pollen cones for survival. Third to fifth instars vacated pollen cones as soon as they became desiccated. Only then did these larvae start close associations with vegetative shoots. First, they excised partially emerged needles at their base, and when the needle-pairs completely escaped their fascicle sheath, the larvae fed routinely on the complete needle lamina. Late instars, pupae and adults were associated with previous years’ and current-year foliage without any apparent bias. This study has shown that it might be more practical to time insecticide strategies, which are intended to manage jack pine budworm larvae, to the tree’s phenology rather than jack pine budworm larval indices
Social Support Seeking And Early Adolescent Depression And Anxiety Symptoms: The Moderating Role Of Rumination
This study examined how social support seeking and rumination interacted to predict depression and anxiety symptoms 6 months later in early adolescents (N = 118; 11-14 years at baseline). We expected social support seeking would be more helpful for adolescents engaging in low rather than high levels of rumination. Adolescents self-reported on all measures at baseline, and on depression and anxiety symptoms 6 months later. Social support seeking predicted fewer symptoms of depression and anxiety at low rumination levels but was not associated with benefits as rumination increased. For depression symptoms, social support seeking predicted more symptoms at high rumination levels. Results were stronger for emotion-focused than problem-focused support seeking and for depression compared with anxiety symptoms. These findings suggest that cognitive risk factors like rumination may explain some inconsistencies in previous social support literature, and highlight the importance of a nuanced approach to studying social support seeking
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