658 research outputs found
Long-lived Giant Number Fluctuations in a Swarming Granular Nematic
Coherently moving flocks of birds, beasts or bacteria are examples of living
matter with spontaneous orientational order. How do these systems differ from
thermal equilibrium systems with such liquid-crystalline order? Working with a
fluidized monolayer of macroscopic rods in the nematic liquid crystalline
phase, we find giant number fluctuations consistent with a standard deviation
growing linearly with the mean, in contrast to any situation where the Central
Limit Theorem applies. These fluctuations are long-lived, decaying only as a
logarithmic function of time. This shows that flocking, coherent motion and
large-scale inhomogeneity can appear in a system in which particles do not
communicate except by contact.Comment: This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by
permission of the AAAS. The definitive version is to appear in SCIENC
Segregation by thermal diffusion of an intruder in a moderately dense granular fluid
A solution of the inelastic Enskog equation that goes beyond the weak
dissipation limit and applies for moderate densities is used to determine the
thermal diffusion factor of an intruder immersed in a dense granular gas under
gravity. This factor provides a segregation criterion that shows the transition
between the Brazil-nut effect (BNE) and the reverse Brazil-nut effect (RBNE) by
varying the parameters of the system (masses, sizes, density and coefficients
of restitution). The form of the phase-diagrams for the BNE/RBNE transition
depends sensitively on the value of gravity relative to the thermal gradient,
so that it is possible to switch between both states for given values of the
parameters of the system. Two specific limits are considered with detail: (i)
absence of gravity, and (ii) homogeneous temperature. In the latter case, after
some approximations, our results are consistent with previous theoretical
results derived from the Enskog equation. Our results also indicate that the
influence of dissipation on thermal diffusion is more important in the absence
of gravity than in the opposite limit. The present analysis extends previous
theoretical results derived in the dilute limit case [V. Garz\'o, Europhys.
Lett. {\bf 75}, 521 (2006)] and is consistent with the findings of some recent
experimental results.Comment: 10 figure
Large Deformation Effects in the N = Z 44Ti Compound Nucleus
The N = Z 44Ti* nucleus has been populated in Fusion Evaporation process at
very high excitation energies and angular momenta using two entrance channels
with different mass-asymmetry. The deformation effects in the rapidly rotating
nuclei have been investigated through the energy distribution of the
alpha-particle combined to statistical-model calculations. In the case of
low-multiplicity events, the ratio between first particle emitted has been
measured and shows significant disagreement with the predictions of the
statistical-model. This may explain The large discrepancies observed in proton
energy spectra measured in previous experiments performed in the same mass
region.Comment: Proceeding of the 10th International Conference on Nuclear Reaction
Mechanisms, Varenna Italy, June 9-13 2003. 10 pages, 6 figures, 1 tabl
PHIL photoinjector test line
LAL is now equiped with its own platform for photoinjectors tests and
Research and Developement, named PHIL (PHotoInjectors at LAL). This facility
has two main purposes: push the limits of the photoinjectors performances
working on both the design and the associated technology and provide a low
energy (MeV) short pulses (ps) electron beam for the interested users. Another
very important goal of this machine will be to provide an opportunity to form
accelerator physics students, working in a high technology environment. To
achieve this goal a test line was realised equipped with an RF source, magnets
and beam diagnostics. In this article we will desrcibe the PHIL beamline and
its characteristics together with the description of the first two
photoinjector realised in LAL and tested: the ALPHAX and the PHIN RF Guns
Molecular dynamics simulations of vibrated granular gases
We present molecular dynamics simulations of mono- or bidisperse inelastic
granular gases driven by vibrating walls, in two dimensions (without gravity).
Because of the energy injection at the boundaries, a situation often met
experimentally, density and temperature fields display heterogeneous profiles
in the direction perpendicular to the walls. A general equation of state for an
arbitrary mixture of fluidized inelastic hard spheres is derived and
successfully tested against numerical data. Single-particle velocity
distribution functions with non-Gaussian features are also obtained, and the
influence of various parameters (inelasticity coefficients, density...)
analyzed. The validity of a recently proposed Random Restitution Coefficient
model is assessed through the study of projected collisions onto the direction
perpendicular to that of energy injection. For the binary mixture, the
non-equipartition of translational kinetic energy is studied and compared both
to experimental data and to the case of homogeneous energy injection
(``stochastic thermostat''). The rescaled velocity distribution functions are
found to be very similar for both species
Improving the interpretation of afternoon cortisol levels and SSTs to prevent misdiagnosis of Adrenal Insufficiency
Introduction Adrenal Insufficiency (AI), especially iatrogenic-AI, is a treatable cause of mortality. The difficulty in obtaining 9am cortisol levels means samples are taken at suboptimal times, including a substantial proportion in the afternoon. Low afternoon cortisol levels often provoke short Synacthen Tests (SSTs). It is important that this does not lead to patients misdiagnosed with AI, exposing them to the excess mortality and morbidity of inappropriate steroid replacement therapy. Methods This retrospective study collected 60,178 cortisol results. Medical records, including subsequent SSTs of initial cortisol results measured after midday were reviewed. Results ROC analysis (AUC- 0.89) on 6531 suitable cortisol values showed that a limit of 95% on the Abbott analyser platform. Conclusion An afternoon cortisol >234nmol/L excludes AI on Abbott analyser platforms. In patients who have an afternoon cortisol <234nmol/L, including both a 30-minute and a 60-minute SST cortisol values prevents unnecessary glucocorticoid replacement therapy in 22.3% of individuals in this study. The Abbott analyser SST cortisol cut-offs used to define AI should be 366.5nmol/L and 418.5nmol/L at 30- and 60-minutes respectively. All patients remained well subsequently with at least one year longitudinal follow up
Protocol on a multicentre statistical and economic modelling study of risk-based stratified and personalised screening for diabetes and its complications in India (SMART India)
INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study is to develop practical and affordable models to (a) diagnose people with diabetes and prediabetes and (b) identify those at risk of diabetes complications so that these models can be applied to the population in low-income and middle-income countries (LMIC) where laboratory tests are unaffordable. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This statistical and economic modelling study will be done on at least 48 000 prospectively recruited participants aged 40 years or above through community screening across 20 predefined regions in India. Each participant will be tested for capillary random blood glucose (RBG) and complete a detailed health-related questionnaire. People with known diabetes and all participants with predefined levels of RBG will undergo further tests, including point-of-care (POC) glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), POC lipid profile and POC urine test for microalbuminuria, retinal photography using non-mydriatic hand-held retinal camera, visual acuity assessment in both eyes and complete quality of life questionnaires. The primary aim of the study is to develop a model and assess its diagnostic performance to predict HbA1c diagnosed diabetes from simple tests that can be applied in resource-limited settings; secondary outcomes include RBG cut-off for definition of prediabetes, diagnostic accuracy of cost-effective risk stratification models for diabetic retinopathy and models for identifying those at risk of complications of diabetes. Diagnostic accuracy inter-tests agreement, statistical and economic modelling will be performed, accounting for clustering effects. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The Indian Council of Medical Research/Health Ministry Screening Committee (HMSC/2018–0494 dated 17 December 2018 and institutional ethics committees of all the participating institutions approved the study. Results will be published in peer-reviewed journals and will be presented at national and international conferences. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN57962668 V1.0 24/09/2018
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