13,773 research outputs found
Localised anti-branes in non-compact throats at zero and finite T
We investigate the 3-form singularities that are typical to anti-brane
solutions in supergravity and check whether they can be cloaked by a finite
temperature horizon. For anti-D3-branes in the Klebanov-Strassler background,
this was already shown numerically to be impossible when the branes are
partially smeared. In this paper, we present analytic arguments that also
localised branes remain with singular 3-form fluxes at both zero and finite
temperature. These results may have important, possibly fatal, consequences for
constructions of meta-stable de Sitter vacua through uplifting.Comment: 18 + 9 page
Reversal of hepatorenal syndrome type 1 with terlipressin plus albumin vs. placebo plus albumin in a pooled analysis of the OT-0401 and REVERSE randomised clinical studies
Background
The goal of hepatorenal syndrome type 1 (HRS-1) treatment is to improve renal function. Terlipressin, a synthetic vasopressin analogue, is a systemic vasoconstrictor used for the treatment of HRS-1, where it is available. Aim
To compare the efficacy of terlipressin plus albumin vs. placebo plus albumin in patients with HRS-1. Methods
Pooled patient-level data from two large phase 3, randomised, placebo-controlled studies were analysed for HRS reversal [serum creatinine (SCr) value ≤133 μmol/L], 90-day survival, need for renal replacement therapy and predictors of HRS reversal. Patients received intravenous terlipressin 1–2 mg every 6 hours plus albumin or placebo plus albumin up to 14 days. Results
The pooled analysis comprised 308 patients (terlipressin: n = 153; placebo: n = 155). HRS reversal was significantly more frequent with terlipressin vs. placebo (27% vs. 14%; P = 0.004). Terlipressin was associated with a more significant improvement in renal function from baseline until end of treatment, with a mean between-group difference in SCr concentration of −53.0 μmol/L (P \u3c 0.0001). Lower SCr, lower mean arterial pressure and lower total bilirubin and absence of known precipitating factors for HRS were independent predictors of HRS reversal and longer survival in terlipressin-treated patients. Conclusions
Terlipressin plus albumin resulted in a significantly higher rate of HRS reversal vs. albumin alone in patients with HRS-1. Terlipressin treatment is associated with improved renal function
Magpie: towards a semantic web browser
Web browsing involves two tasks: finding the right web page and then making sense of its content. So far, research has focused on supporting the task of finding web resources through ‘standard’ information retrieval mechanisms, or semantics-enhanced search. Much less attention has been paid to the second problem. In this paper we describe Magpie, a tool which supports the
interpretation of web pages. Magpie offers complementary knowledge sources, which a reader can call upon to quickly gain access to any background knowledge relevant to a web resource. Magpie automatically associates an ontologybased
semantic layer to web resources, allowing relevant services to be invoked within a standard web browser. Hence, Magpie may be seen as a step towards a semantic web browser. The functionality of Magpie is illustrated using examples of how it has been integrated with our lab’s web resources
Gause's exclusion principle revisited: artificial modified species and competition
Gause's principle of competition between two species is studied when one of
them is sterile. We study the condition for total extinction in the niche,
namely, when the sterile population exterminates the native one by an optimal
use of resources. A mathematical Lotka-Volterra non linear model of interaction
between a native and sterile species is proposed. The condition for total
extinction is related to the initial number of sterile individuals
released in the niche. In fact, the existence of a critical sterile-population
value is conjectured from numerical analysis and an analytical
estimation is found. When spatial diffusion (migration) is considered a
critical size territory is found and, for small territory, total extinction
exist in any case. This work is motived by the extermination agriculture
problem of fruit flies in our region.Comment: 11 pages. Published in Jour.Phys.A Math.Gen. 33, 4877 (2000
OPTIMALLY STAGGERED FINNED CIRCULAR AND ELLIPTIC TUBES IN FORCED CONVECTION
This work presents a three-dimensional (3-D) numerical and experimental geometric
optimization study to maximize the total heat transfer rate between a bundle of finned
tubes in a given volume and a given external flow both for circular and elliptic
arrangements, for general staggered configurations. The optimization procedure started
by recognizing the design limited space availability as a fixed volume constraint. The
experimental results were obtained for circular and elliptic configurations with a fixed
number of tubes (12), starting with an equilateral triangle configuration, which fitted
uniformly into the fixed volume with a resulting maximum dimensionless tube-to-tube
spacing S/2b = 1.5, where S is the actual spacing and b is the smaller ellipse semi-axis.
Several experimental configurations were built by reducing the tube-to-tube spacings,
identifying the optimal spacing for maximum heat transfer. Similarly, it was possible to
investigate the existence of optima with respect to other two geometric degrees of
freedom, i.e., tube eccentricity and fin-to-fin spacing. The results are reported for air as
the external fluid in the laminar regime, for 125 and 100 Re 2b , where 2b is the
ellipses smaller axis length. Circular and elliptic arrangements with the same flow
obstruction cross-sectional area were compared on the basis of maximum total heat
transfer. This criterion allows one to quantify the heat transfer gain in the most isolated
way possible, by studying arrangements with equivalent total pressure drops
independently of the tube cross section shape. This paper reports three-dimensional (3-
D) numerical optimization results for finned circular and elliptic tubes arrangements,
which are validated by direct comparison with experimental measurements with good
agreement. Global optima with respect to tube-to-tube spacing, eccentricity and fin-tofin
spacing ( 0.5 e 0.5, S/2b and 06 . 0 f for 125 and 100 Re 2b ,
respectively) were found and reported in general dimensionless variables. A relative heat
transfer gain of up to 19% is observed in the optimal elliptic arrangement, as compared
to the optimal circular one. The heat transfer gain, combined with the relative material
mass reduction of up to 32% observed in the optimal elliptic arrangement in comparison
to the circular one, show the elliptical arrangement has the potential for a considerably
better overall performance and lower cost than the traditional circular geometry
MiRNA let-7g regulates skeletal myoblast motility via Pinch-2
AbstractPost-transcriptional regulation of gene expression by RNA-binding proteins and by small non-coding RNAs plays an important role in cell biology. Our previous results show that in murine skeletal myoblasts, the expression of Pinch-2, a focal adhesion remodeling factor that regulates cell motility, is repressed by an RNA-binding protein IMP-2/Igf2bp2. We now show that the expression of Pinch-2 is also regulated by the miRNA let-7g. Let-7g and IMP-2 repress Pinch-2 expression independently of each other. A knock-down of let-7g leads to an increase in Pinch-2 expression, and to a decrease of cell motility, which can be reversed by a simultaneous knock-down of Pinch-2. We conclude that let-7g controls the motility of mouse myoblasts in cell culture by post-transcriptionally regulating the expression of Pinch-2
Changes in growth of tropical forests: evaluating potential biases
Over the past century almost every ecosystem on Earth has come under the
influence of changes in atmospheric composition and climate caused by human activity.
Tropical forests are among the most productive and extensive ecosystems, and it has been
hypothesized that both the dynamics and biomass of apparently undisturbed, old-growth
tropical forests have been changing in response to atmospheric changes. Long-term forest
sample plots are a critical tool in detecting and monitoring such changes, and our recent
analysis of pan-tropical-forest plot data has suggested that the biomass of tropical forests
has been increasing, providing a modest negative feedback on the rate of accumulation of
atmospheric CO2. However, it has been argued that some of these old forest plot data sets
have significant problems in interpretation because of the use of nonstandardized methodologies.
In this paper we examine the extent to which potential field methodological errors may
bias estimates of total biomass change by detailed examination of tree-by-tree records from
up to 120 Neotropical plots to test predictions from theory. Potential positive biases on
measurements of biomass change include a bias in site selection, tree deformities introduced
by the measurement process, poor methodologies to deal with tree deformities or buttresses,
and nonrecording of negative growth increments. We show that, while it is important to
improve and standardize methodologies in current and future forest-plot work, any systematic
errors introduced by currently identified biases in past studies are small and calculable.
We conclude that most tropical-forest plot data are of useful quality, and that the evidence
does still weigh conclusively in favor of a recent increase of biomass in old-growth tropical
forests
A Light Calibration System for the ProtoDUNE-DP Detector
A LED-based fiber calibration system for the ProtoDUNE-Dual Phase (DP) photon
detection system (PDS) has been designed and validated. ProtoDUNE-DP is a 6x6x6
m3 liquid argon time-projection-chamber currently being installed at the
Neutrino Platform at CERN. The PDS is based on 36 8-inch photomultiplier tubes
(PMTs) and will allow triggering on cosmic rays. The system serves as prototype
for the PDS of the final DUNE DP far detector in which the PDS also has the
function to allow the 3D event reconstruction on non-beam physics. For this
purpose an equalized PMT response is desirable to allow using the same
threshold definition for all PMT groups, simplifying the determination of the
trigger efficiency. The light calibration system described in this paper is
developed to provide this and to monitor the PMT performance in-situ.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figure
Local helioseismology of sunspot regions: comparison of ring-diagram and time-distance results
Local helioseismology provides unique information about the subsurface
structure and dynamics of sunspots and active regions. However, because of
complexity of sunspot regions local helioseismology diagnostics require careful
analysis of systematic uncertainties and physical interpretation of the
inversion results. We present new results of comparison of the ring-diagram
analysis and time-distance helioseismology for active region NOAA 9787, for
which a previous comparison showed significant differences in the subsurface
sound-speed structure, and discuss systematic uncertainties of the measurements
and inversions. Our results show that both the ring-diagram and time-distance
techniques give qualitatively similar results, revealing a characteristic
two-layer seismic sound-speed structure consistent with the results for other
active regions. However, a quantitative comparison of the inversion results is
not straightforward. It must take into account differences in the sensitivity,
spatial resolution and the averaging kernels. In particular, because of the
acoustic power suppression, the contribution of the sunspot seismic structure
to the ring-diagram signal can be substantially reduced. We show that taking
into account this effect reduces the difference in the depth of transition
between the negative and positive sound-speed variations inferred by these
methods. Further detailed analysis of the sensitivity, resolution and averaging
properties of the local helioseismology methods is necessary for consolidation
of the inversion results. It seems to be important that both methods indicate
that the seismic structure of sunspots is rather deep and extends to at least
20 Mm below the surface, putting constraints on theoretical models of sunspots.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figures, submitted to Journal of Physics: Conference
Series (JPCS) GONG 2010 - SoHO 24 "A new era of seismology of the Sun and
solar-like stars", June 27 - July 2, 2010 Aix-en-Provence, Franc
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