1,237 research outputs found
Capillary resistance studies in the newborn infant and in late pregnancy, labour and early puerperium
Unusual Weather and River Bank Erosion in the Delta of the Colville River, Alaska
Reports correlation between weather conditions and erosion observed in this arctic coastal area in 1961. The summer's unusually high temperatures and precipitation, also strong and frequent west winds caused greater-than-normal flooding and collapse of river banks
Feedback-control of quantum systems using continuous state-estimation
We present a formulation of feedback in quantum systems in which the best
estimates of the dynamical variables are obtained continuously from the
measurement record, and fed back to control the system. We apply this method to
the problem of cooling and confining a single quantum degree of freedom, and
compare it to current schemes in which the measurement signal is fed back
directly in the manner usually considered in existing treatments of quantum
feedback. Direct feedback may be combined with feedback by estimation, and the
resulting combination, performed on a linear system, is closely analogous to
classical LQG control theory with residual feedback.Comment: 12 pages, multicol revtex, revised and extende
Non-Markovian homodyne-mediated feedback on a two-level atom: a quantum trajectory treatment
Quantum feedback can stabilize a two-level atom against decoherence
(spontaneous emission), putting it into an arbitrary (specified) pure state.
This requires perfect homodyne detection of the atomic emission, and
instantaneous feedback. Inefficient detection was considered previously by two
of us. Here we allow for a non-zero delay time in the feedback circuit.
Because a two-level atom is a nonlinear optical system, an analytical solution
is not possible. However, quantum trajectories allow a simple numerical
simulation of the resulting non-Markovian process. We find the effect of the
time delay to be qualitatively similar to that of inefficient detection. The
solution of the non-Markovian quantum trajectory will not remain fixed, so that
the time-averaged state will be mixed, not pure. In the case where one tries to
stabilize the atom in the excited state, an approximate analytical solution to
the quantum trajectory is possible. The result, that the purity () of the average state is given by (where
is the spontaneous emission rate) is found to agree very well with the
numerical results.Comment: Changed content, Added references and Corrected typo
Adsorption of Streptococcus mutans on Chemically Treated Hydroxyapatite
Adsorption of Streptococcus mutans on hydroxyapatite and chemically treated hydroxyapatite was studied. Zeta potentials of the surfaces were measured. Chemically treated hydroxyapatite gave higher ζ potentials and lower S mutans adsorption.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/67845/2/10.1177_00220345780570091601.pd
Confined granular packings: structure, stress, and forces
The structure and stresses of static granular packs in cylindrical containers
are studied using large-scale discrete element molecular dynamics simulations
in three dimensions. We generate packings by both pouring and sedimentation and
examine how the final state depends on the method of construction. The vertical
stress becomes depth-independent for deep piles and we compare these stress
depth-profiles to the classical Janssen theory. The majority of the tangential
forces for particle-wall contacts are found to be close to the Coulomb failure
criterion, in agreement with the theory of Janssen, while particle-particle
contacts in the bulk are far from the Coulomb criterion. In addition, we show
that a linear hydrostatic-like region at the top of the packings unexplained by
the Janssen theory arises because most of the particle-wall tangential forces
in this region are far from the Coulomb yield criterion. The distributions of
particle-particle and particle-wall contact forces exhibit
exponential-like decay at large forces in agreement with previous studies.Comment: 11 pages, 11 figures, submitted to PRE (v2) added new references,
fixed typo
Multiscale Bone Remodelling with Spatial P Systems
Many biological phenomena are inherently multiscale, i.e. they are
characterized by interactions involving different spatial and temporal scales
simultaneously. Though several approaches have been proposed to provide
"multilayer" models, only Complex Automata, derived from Cellular Automata,
naturally embed spatial information and realize multiscaling with
well-established inter-scale integration schemas. Spatial P systems, a variant
of P systems in which a more geometric concept of space has been added, have
several characteristics in common with Cellular Automata. We propose such a
formalism as a basis to rephrase the Complex Automata multiscaling approach
and, in this perspective, provide a 2-scale Spatial P system describing bone
remodelling. The proposed model not only results to be highly faithful and
expressive in a multiscale scenario, but also highlights the need of a deep and
formal expressiveness study involving Complex Automata, Spatial P systems and
other promising multiscale approaches, such as our shape-based one already
resulted to be highly faithful.Comment: In Proceedings MeCBIC 2010, arXiv:1011.005
Height and risk of death among men and women: aetiological implications of associations with cardiorespiratory disease and cancer mortality
OBJECTIVES: Height is inversely associated with cardiovascular disease mortality risk and has shown variable associations with cancer incidence and mortality. The interpretation of findings from previous studies has been constrained by data limitations. Associations between height and specific causes of death were investigated in a large general population cohort of men and women from the West of Scotland.
DESIGN: Prospective observational study.
SETTING: Renfrew and Paisley, in the West of Scotland.
SUBJECTS: 7052 men and 8354 women aged 45-64 were recruited into a study in Renfrew and Paisley, in the West of Scotland, between 1972 and 1976. Detailed assessments of cardiovascular disease risk factors, morbidity and socioeconomic circumstances were made at baseline.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Deaths during 20 years of follow up classified into specific causes.
RESULTS: Over the follow up period 3347 men and 2638 women died. Height is inversely associated with all cause, coronary heart disease, stroke, and respiratory disease mortality among men and women. Adjustment for socioeconomic position and cardiovascular risk factors had little influence on these associations. Height is strongly associated with forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) and adjustment for FEV1 considerably attenuated the association between height and cardiorespiratory mortality. Smoking related cancer mortality is not associated with height. The risk of deaths from cancer unrelated to smoking tended to increase with height, particularly for haematopoietic, colorectal and prostate cancers. Stomach cancer mortality was inversely associated with height. Adjustment for socioeconomic position had little influence on these associations.
CONCLUSION: Height serves partly as an indicator of socioeconomic circumstances and nutritional status in childhood and this may underlie the inverse associations between height and adulthood cardiorespiratory mortality. Much of the association between height and cardiorespiratory mortality was accounted for by lung function, which is also partly determined by exposures acting in childhood. The inverse association between height and stomach cancer mortality probably reflects Helicobacter pylori infection in childhood resulting inor being associated withshorter height. The positive associations between height and several cancers unrelated to smoking could reflect the influence of calorie intake during childhood on the risk of these cancers
Measurement of single electron emission in two-phase xenon
We present the first measurements of the electroluminescence response to the
emission of single electrons in a two-phase noble gas detector. Single
ionization electrons generated in liquid xenon are detected in a thin gas layer
during the 31-day background run of the ZEPLIN-II experiment, a two-phase xenon
detector for WIMP dark matter searches. Both the pressure dependence and
magnitude of the single-electron response are in agreement with previous
measurements of electroluminescence yield in xenon. We discuss different
photoionization processes as possible cause for the sample of single electrons
studied in this work. This observation may have implications for the design and
operation of future large-scale two-phase systems.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figure
Many happy returns: combining insights from the environmental and behavioural sciences to understand what is required to make reusable packaging mainstream
The introduction of reusable packaging systems (both refill and return) has the potential to significantly reduce waste from single-use plastic packaging. However, for these schemes to be successful, both the environmental impact and the willingness of consumers to engage with such systems need to be carefully considered. This paper combines and discusses two complementary studies: (i) a life cycle assessment comparing the environmental impacts of single-use, refillable, and returnable containers for a takeaway meal, and (ii) a large online survey of UK adults exploring what types of product and packaging consumers are willing to reuse, how, and why. The findings of the life cycle assessment indicate that reusable containers outperform single-use plastic containers on most measures of environmental impact. The survey found that given the choice of disposal, reuse or recycling, that recycling is the preferred method of dealing with packaging once empty in the UK, and that people's decisions with regards to what types of packaging they are willing to reuse are largely driven by the aspects of the packaging itself (e.g., material and type) rather than the nature of the product inside of the packaging (e.g., state of matter of the contents). The survey also showed that people were more willing to engage in reuse systems with which they were already familiar. Additionally the language used to describe these schemes and the term ‘reuse’ needs to be considered. Combined, these factors can be used to determine the best packaging reuse system for a given product and situation
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