8,688 research outputs found
Preparation, analysis and release of simulated interplanetary grains into low Earth orbit
Astronomical observations which reflect the optical and dynamical properties of interstellar and interplanetary grains are the primary means of identifying the shape, size, and the chemistry of extraterrestrial grain materials. Except for recent samplings of extraterrestrial particles in near-Earth orbit and in the stratosphere observations were the only method of deducing the properties of extraterrestrial particles. In order to elucidate the detailed characteristics of observed dust, the observations must be compared with theoretical studies, some of which are discussed in this volume, or compared with terrestrial laboratory experiments. The formation and optical characterization of simulated interstellar and interplanetary dust with particular emphasis on studying the properties on irregularly shaped particles were discussed. Efforts to develop the techniques to allow dust experiments to be carried out in low-Earth orbit were discussed, thus extending the conditions under which dust experiments may be performed
An Analytic Equation of State for Ising-like Models
Using an Environmentally Friendly Renormalization we derive, from an
underlying field theory representation, a formal expression for the equation of
state, , that exhibits all desired asymptotic and analyticity
properties in the three limits , and . The only
necessary inputs are the Wilson functions , and
, associated with a renormalization of the transverse vertex
functions. These Wilson functions exhibit a crossover between the Wilson-Fisher
fixed point and the fixed point that controls the coexistence curve.
Restricting to the case N=1, we derive a one-loop equation of state for naturally parameterized by a ratio of non-linear scaling fields. For
we show that a non-parameterized analytic form can be deduced. Various
asymptotic amplitudes are calculated directly from the equation of state in all
three asymptotic limits of interest and comparison made with known results. By
positing a scaling form for the equation of state inspired by the one-loop
result, but adjusted to fit the known values of the critical exponents, we
obtain better agreement with known asymptotic amplitudes.Comment: 10 pages, 2 figure
Effective Critical Exponents for Dimensional Ccrossover and Quantum Systems from an Environmentally Friendly Renormalization Group
Series for the Wilson functions of an ``environmentally friendly''
renormalization group are computed to two loops, for an vector model, in
terms of the ``floating coupling'', and resummed by the Pad\'e method to yield
crossover exponents for finite size and quantum systems. The resulting
effective exponents obey all scaling laws, including hyperscaling in terms of
an effective dimensionality, {d\ef}=4-\gl, which represents the crossover in
the leading irrelevant operator, and are in excellent agreement with known
results.Comment: 10 pages of Plain Tex, Postscript figures available upon request from
[email protected], preprint numbers THU-93/18, DIAS-STP-93-1
The Time Machine: A Simulation Approach for Stochastic Trees
In the following paper we consider a simulation technique for stochastic
trees. One of the most important areas in computational genetics is the
calculation and subsequent maximization of the likelihood function associated
to such models. This typically consists of using importance sampling (IS) and
sequential Monte Carlo (SMC) techniques. The approach proceeds by simulating
the tree, backward in time from observed data, to a most recent common ancestor
(MRCA). However, in many cases, the computational time and variance of
estimators are often too high to make standard approaches useful. In this paper
we propose to stop the simulation, subsequently yielding biased estimates of
the likelihood surface. The bias is investigated from a theoretical point of
view. Results from simulation studies are also given to investigate the balance
between loss of accuracy, saving in computing time and variance reduction.Comment: 22 Pages, 5 Figure
The birth place of the type Ic Supernova 2007gr
We report our attempts to locate the progenitor of the peculiar type Ic SN
2007gr in HST pre-explosion images of the host galaxy, NGC 1058. Aligning
adaptive optics Altair/NIRI imaging of SN 2007gr from the Gemini (North)
Telescope with the pre-explosion HST WFPC2 images, we identify the SN position
on the HST frames with an accuracy of 20 mas. Although nothing is detected at
the SN position we show that it lies on the edge of a bright source, 134+/-23
mas (6.9 pc) from its nominal centre. Based on its luminosity we suggest that
this object is possibly an unresolved, compact and coeval cluster and that the
SN progenitor was a cluster member, although we note that model profile fitting
favours a single bright star. We find two solutions for the age of this assumed
cluster; 7-/+0.5 Myrs and 20-30 Myrs, with turn-off masses of 28+/-4 Msun and
12-9 Msun respectively. Pre-explosion ground-based K-band images marginally
favour the younger cluster age/higher turn-off mass. Assuming the SN progenitor
was a cluster member, the turn-off mass provides the best estimate for its
initial mass. More detailed observations, after the SN has faded, should
determine if the progenitor was indeed part of a cluster, and if so allow an
age estimate to within ~2 Myrs thereby favouring either a high mass single star
or lower mass interacting binary progenitor.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures, resolution of fig 1. has been reduced, some
revision based on referee's comments, Accepted ApJL 27 Nov 200
Report on opportunities and/or techniques for high-caliber experimental research (other) proposals for SSPEX
Brief discriptions of the following 13 experiments are included: ultrahigh vacuum petrology facility; artificial comet free flyer; artificial comet (tethered); cosmic dust detector; cosmic dust collector; dust collection using tethered satellites; artificial magnetosphere; microgravity petrological studies; slitless ultraviolet spectrometer; orbital determination and capture experiment (ODACE); high velocity sputtering of amorphous silicates; particle release experiments; and calibration of gamma and X-ray remote sensingprobes
Nuclear magnetic resonance probes for the Kondo scenario for the 0.7 feature in semiconductor quantum point contact devices
We propose a probe based on nuclear relaxation and Knight shift measurements
for the Kondo scenario for the "0.7 feature" in semiconductor quantum point
contact (QPC) devices. We show that the presence of a bound electron in the QPC
would lead to a much higher rate of nuclear relaxation compared to nuclear
relaxation through exchange of spin with conduction electrons. Furthermore, we
show that the temperature dependence of this nuclear relaxation is very
non-monotonic as opposed to the linear-T relaxation from coupling with
conduction electrons. We present a qualitative analysis for the additional
relaxation due to nuclear spin diffusion (NSD) and study the extent to which
NSD affects the range of validity of our method. The conclusion is that nuclear
relaxation, in combination with Knight shift measurements, can be used to
verify whether the 0.7 feature is indeed due to the presence of a bound
electron in the QPC.Comment: Published version. Appears in a Special Section on the 0.7 Feature
and Interactions in One-Dimensional Systems. 16 page
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Synthesis and antibacterial profiles of targeted triclosan derivatives
There is an ongoing urgent need for new targeted antibacterial com pounds with novel mechanisms of action for the treatment of infections caused by bacteria that are resistant to currently available materials. Since the expression of glycosidase enzymes within bacteria is unequally distributed, glycoside derivatives of antibacterial agents offer potential as targeted prodrugs for bacterial infections. Herein we report the synthesis and characterisation of four α-D-glycopyranosides and three β-D-glycopyranosides of the broad antibacterial agent triclosan, in generally good synthetic yields, and with excellent purities. Each glycoside was analysed to determine its ability to inhibit the growth of a wide range of Gram-negative and Gram-positive organisms, including many of clinical significance. All of the triclosan glycosides that were synthesized demonstrated antibacterial activity against many of the organisms that were examined. For example, β-galactoside (3a) and α-arabinoside (3c) had MIC values of 0.5 μg/ ml for several strains of S. aureus and S. haemolyticus. The triclosan glycosides were also generally found to be more water soluble and much more selective than the underivatized triclosan, making them ideal both for the targeted inhibition of bacterial growth and as agents for the selective recovery of bacteria from mixed cultures. In the latter case, two Bacillus strains could be identified from various strains of Bacillus and Staphylococcus after inoculation onto Nutri ent Agar No. 2 with 0.25 μg/ ml tri closan-α-D-glucopyranoside (3e). This glucoside may, therefore, be of use for the isolation and identification of the foodpoisoing organism Bacillus cereus
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