1,419 research outputs found

    Self-excited oscillations in a collapsible channel with applications to retinal venous pulsation

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    We consider a theoretical model for the flow of Newtonian fluid through a long flexible-walled channel which is formed from four compliant and rigid compartments arranged alternately in series. We drive the flow using a fixed upstream flux and derive a spatially one-dimensional model using a flow profile assumption. The compliant compartments of the channel are assumed subject to a large external pressure, so the system admits a highly collapsed steady state. Using both a global (linear) stability eigensolver and fully nonlinear simulations, we show that these highly collapsed steady states admit a primary global oscillatory instability similar to observations in a single channel. We also show that in some regions of the parameter space the system admits a secondary mode of instability which can interact with the primary mode and lead to significant changes in the structure of the neutral stability curves. Finally, we apply the predictions of this model to the flow of blood through the central retinal vein and examine the conditions required for the onset of self-excited oscillation. We show that the neutral stability curve of the primary mode of instability discussed above agrees well with canine experimental measurements of the onset of retinal venous pulsation, although there is a large discrepancy in the oscillation frequency

    Maternal obesity is associated with the formation of small dense LDL and hypoadiponectinemia in the third trimester

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    Context: Maternal obesity is associated with high plasma triglyceride, poor vascular function, and an increased risk for pregnancy complications. In normal-weight pregnant women, higher triglyceride is associated with increased small, dense low-density lipoprotein (LDL). Hypothesis: In obese pregnancy, increased plasma triglyceride concentrations result in triglyceride enrichment of very low-density lipoprotein-1 particles and formation of small dense LDL via lipoprotein lipase. Design: Women (n = 55) of body mass index of 18–46 kg/m2 were sampled longitudinally at 12, 26, and 35 weeks' gestation and 4 months postnatally. Setting: Women were recruited at hospital antenatal appointments, and study visits were in a clinical research suite. Outcome Measures: Plasma concentrations of lipids, triglyceride-rich lipoproteins, lipoprotein lipase mass, estradiol, steroid hormone binding globulin, insulin, glucose, leptin, and adiponectin were determined. Results: Obese women commenced pregnancy with higher plasma triglyceride, reached the same maximum, and then returned to higher postnatal levels than normal-weight women. Estradiol response to pregnancy (trimester 1–3 incremental area under the curve) was positively associated with plasma triglyceride response (r2 adjusted 25%, P < .001). In the third trimester, the proportion of small, dense LDL was 2-fold higher in obese women than normal-weight women [mean (SD) 40.7 (18.8) vs 21.9 (10.9)%, P = .014], and 35% of obese, 14% of overweight, and none of the normal-weight women displayed an atherogenic LDL subfraction phenotype. The small, dense LDL mass response to pregnancy was inversely associated with adiponectin response (17%, P = .013). Conclusions: Maternal obesity is associated with an atherogenic LDL subfraction phenotype and may provide a mechanistic link to poor vascular function and adverse pregnancy outcome

    Revisiting the calculations of inflationary perturbations

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    We present a new approximation scheme that allows us to increase the accuracy of analytical predictions of the power spectra of inflationary perturbations for two specific classes of inflationary models. Among these models are chaotic inflation with a monomial potential, power-law inflation and natural inflation (inflation at a maximum). After reviewing the established first order results we calculate the amplitudes and spectral indices for these classes of models at higher orders in the slow-roll parameters for scalar and tensorial perturbations.Comment: Extended version of the talk to be published in the proceedings of the Mexican Meeting on Exact Solutions and Scalar Fields in Gravity. Mexico, 1-6 October, 200

    Similar dissection of sets

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    In 1994, Martin Gardner stated a set of questions concerning the dissection of a square or an equilateral triangle in three similar parts. Meanwhile, Gardner's questions have been generalized and some of them are already solved. In the present paper, we solve more of his questions and treat them in a much more general context. Let DRdD\subset \mathbb{R}^d be a given set and let f1,...,fkf_1,...,f_k be injective continuous mappings. Does there exist a set XX such that D=Xf1(X)...fk(X)D = X \cup f_1(X) \cup ... \cup f_k(X) is satisfied with a non-overlapping union? We prove that such a set XX exists for certain choices of DD and {f1,...,fk}\{f_1,...,f_k\}. The solutions XX often turn out to be attractors of iterated function systems with condensation in the sense of Barnsley. Coming back to Gardner's setting, we use our theory to prove that an equilateral triangle can be dissected in three similar copies whose areas have ratio 1:1:a1:1:a for a(3+5)/2a \ge (3+\sqrt{5})/2

    Pretreatment with beta-blockers and the frequency of hypokalemia in patients with acute chest pain

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    Plasma potassium concentration was measured at admission in 1234 patients who presented with acute chest pain. One hundred and ninety five patients were on P blockers before admission. The potassium concentrations of patients admitted early (within four hours of onsetof symptoms) were compared with those admitted later (4-18 hours after onset of symptoms). There was a transient fall in plasma potassium concentrations in patients not pre-treated with , B blockers. This was not seen in patients who had been on P blockers before admission. Nonselective, B blockers were more effective than cardioselective agents in maintaining concentrationsof plasma potassium. These findings suggest a mechanism for the beneficial effects of ,B blockers on morbidity and mortality in acute myocardial infarction

    Improved Estimates of Cosmological Perturbations

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    We recently derived exact solutions for the scalar, vector and tensor mode functions of a single, minimally coupled scalar plus gravity in an arbitrary homogeneous and isotropic background. These solutions are applied to obtain improved estimates for the primordial scalar and tensor power spectra of anisotropies in the cosmic microwave background.Comment: 31 pages, 4 figures, LaTeX 2epsilon, this version corrects an embarrasing mistake (in the published version) for the parameter q_C. Affected eqns are 105, 109-110, 124, 148-153 and 155-15

    How to Stop (Worrying and Love) the Bubble: Boundary Changing Solutions

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    We discover that a class of bubbles of nothing are embedded as time dependent scaling limits of previous spacelike-brane solutions. With the right initial conditions, a near-bubble solution can relax its expansion and open the compact circle. Thermodynamics of the new class of solutions is discussed and the relationships between brane/flux transitions, tachyon condensation and imaginary D-branes are outlined. Finally, a related class of simultaneous connected S-branes are also examined.Comment: 47 pages; v2 introduction to Weyl cards added, comments added, references added, typos corrected, matches JHEP versio

    Eigenvalue computations in the context of data-sparse approximations of integral operators

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    In this work, we consider the numerical solution of a large eigenvalue problem resulting from a finite rank discretization of an integral operator. We are interested in computing a few eigenpairs, with an iterative method, so a matrix representation that allows for fast matrix-vector products is required. Hierarchical matrices are appropriate for this setting, and also provide cheap LU decompositions required in the spectral transformation technique. We illustrate the use of freely available software tools to address the problem, in particular SLEPc for the eigensolvers and HLib for the construction of H-matrices. The numerical tests are performed using an astrophysics application. Results show the benefits of the data-sparse representation compared to standard storage schemes, in terms of computational cost as well as memory requirements.This work was partially supported by the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion under projects TIN2009-07519, TIN2012-32846 and AIC10-D-000600 and by Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia - FCT under project FCT/MICINN proc 441.00.Román Moltó, JE.; Vasconcelos, PB.; Nunes, AL. (2013). Eigenvalue computations in the context of data-sparse approximations of integral operators. Journal of Computational and Applied Mathematics. 237(1):171-181. doi:10.1016/j.cam.2012.07.021S171181237
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