294 research outputs found
Form factors and decoupling of matter fields in four-dimensional gravity
We extend previous calculations of the non-local form factors of semiclassical gravity in 4D to include the Einstein–Hilbert term. The quantized fields are massive scalar, fermion and vector fields. The non-local form factor in this case can be seen as the sum of a power series of total derivatives, but it enables us to derive the beta function of Newton's constant and formally evaluate the decoupling law in the new sector, which turns out to be the standard quadratic one
Whistler Waves Driven by Anisotropic Strahl Velocity Distributions: Cluster Observations
Observed properties of the strahl using high resolution 3D electron velocity distribution data obtained from the Cluster/PEACE experiment are used to investigate its linear stability. An automated method to isolate the strahl is used to allow its moments to be computed independent of the solar wind core+halo. Results show that the strahl can have a high temperature anisotropy (T(perpindicular)/T(parallell) approximately > 2). This anisotropy is shown to be an important free energy source for the excitation of high frequency whistler waves. The analysis suggests that the resultant whistler waves are strong enough to regulate the electron velocity distributions in the solar wind through pitch-angle scatterin
Closed-loop control of continuous piperacillin delivery: an in silico study
Background and objective: Sub-therapeutic dosing of piperacillin-tazobactam in critically-ill patients is associated with poor clinical outcomes and may promote the emergence of drug-resistant infections. In this paper, an in silico investigation of whether closed-loop control can improve pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PK-PD) target attainment is described. Method: An in silico platform was developed using PK data from 20 critically-ill patients receiving piperacillin-tazobactam where serum and tissue interstitial fluid (ISF) PK were defined. Intra-day variability on renal clearance, ISF sensor error, and infusion constraints were taken into account. Proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control was selected for drug delivery modulation. Dose adjustment was made based on ISF sensor data with a 30-minute sampling period, targeting a serum piperacillin concentration between 32-64 mg/L. A single tuning parameter set was employed across the virtual population. The PID controller was compared to standard therapy, including bolus and continuous infusion of piperacillin-tazobactam. Results: Despite significant inter-subject and simulated intra-day PK variability and sensor error, PID demonstrated a significant improvement in target attainment compared to traditional bolus and continuous infusion approaches. Conclusion: A PID controller driven by ISF drug concentration measurements has the potential to precisely deliver piperacillin-tazobactam in critically-ill patients undergoing treatment for sepsis
An effective Nuclear Model: from Nuclear Matter to Finite Nuclei
The momentum and density dependence of mean fields in symmetric and
asymmetric nuclear matter are analysed using the simple density dependent
finite range effective interaction containing a single Gaussian term alongwith
the zero-range terms. Within the formalism developed, it is possible to
reproduce the various diverging predictions on the momentum and density
dependence of isovector part of the mean field in asymmetric matter. The finite
nucleus calculation is formulated for the simple Gaussian interaction in the
framework of quasilocal density functional theory. The prediction of energies
and charge radii of the interaction for the spherical nuclei compares well with
the results of other effective theories.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables, To appear in the Proceedings of the
11th International Conference on Nucleus-Nucleus Collisions (NN2012), May
27-June 1, 2012, San Antonio, Texas, US
Cooper pair sizes in 11Li and in superfluid nuclei: a puzzle?
We point out a strong influence of the pairing force on the size of the two
neutron Cooper pair in Li, and to a lesser extent also in He. It
seems that these are quite unique situations, since Cooper pair sizes of stable
superfluid nuclei are very little influenced by the intensity of pairing, as
recently reported. We explore the difference between Li and heavier
superfulid nuclei, and discuss reasons for the exceptional situation in
Li.Comment: 9 pages. To be published in J. of Phys. G special issue on Open
Problems in Nuclear Structure (OPeNST
Acceleration of Solar Wind Ions by Nearby Interplanetary Shocks: Comparison of Monte Carlo Simulations with Ulysses Observations
The most stringent test of theoretical models of the first-order Fermi
mechanism at collisionless astrophysical shocks is a comparison of the
theoretical predictions with observational data on particle populations. Such
comparisons have yielded good agreement between observations at the
quasi-parallel portion of the Earth's bow shock and three theoretical
approaches, including Monte Carlo kinetic simulations. This paper extends such
model testing to the realm of oblique interplanetary shocks: here observations
of proton and alpha particle distributions made by the SWICS ion mass
spectrometer on Ulysses at nearby interplanetary shocks are compared with test
particle Monte Carlo simulation predictions of accelerated populations. The
plasma parameters used in the simulation are obtained from measurements of
solar wind particles and the magnetic field upstream of individual shocks. Good
agreement between downstream spectral measurements and the simulation
predictions are obtained for two shocks by allowing the the ratio of the
mean-free scattering length to the ionic gyroradius, to vary in an optimization
of the fit to the data. Generally small values of this ratio are obtained,
corresponding to the case of strong scattering. The acceleration process
appears to be roughly independent of the mass or charge of the species.Comment: 26 pages, 6 figures, AASTeX format, to appear in the Astrophysical
Journal, February 20, 199
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