Possible structure in the GRB sky distribution at redshift two

Context. Research over the past three decades has revolutionized cosmology while supporting the standard cosmological model. However, the cosmological principle of Universal homogeneity and isotropy has always been in question, since structures as large as the survey size have always been found each time the survey size has increased. Until 2013, the largest known structure in our Universe was the Sloan Great Wall, which is more than 400 Mpc long located approximately one billion light years away. Aims. Gamma-ray bursts are the most energetic explosions in the Universe. As they are associated with the stellar endpoints of massive stars and are found in and near distant galaxies, they are viable indicators of the dense part of the Universe containing normal matter. The spatial distribution of gamma-ray bursts can thus help expose the large scale structure of the Universe. Methods. As of July 2012, 283 GRB redshifts have been measured. Subdividing this sample into nine radial parts, each containing 31 GRBs, indicates that the GRB sample having 1.6 < z < 2.1 differs significantly from the others in that 14 of the 31 GRBs are concentrated in roughly 1/8 of the sky. A two-dimensional Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, a nearest-neighbour test, and a Bootstrap Point-Radius Method explore the significance of this clustering. Results. All tests used indicate that there is a statistically significant clustering of the GRB sample at 1.6 < z < 2.1. Furthermore, this angular excess cannot be entirely attributed to known selection biases, making its existence due to chance unlikely. Conclusions. This huge structure lies ten times farther away than the Sloan Great Wall, at a distance of approximately ten billion light years. The size of the structure defined by these GRBs is about 2000-3000 Mpc, or more than six times the size of the Sloan Great Wall.Comment: accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic

Cosmology with Gamma-Ray Bursts Using k-correction

In the case of Gamma-Ray Bursts with measured redshift, we can calculate the k-correction to get the fluence and energy that were actually produced in the comoving system of the GRB. To achieve this we have to use well-fitted parameters of a GRB spectrum, available in the GCN database. The output of the calculations is the comoving isotropic energy E_iso, but this is not the endpoint: this data can be useful for estimating the {\Omega}M parameter of the Universe and for making a GRB Hubble diagram using Amati's relation.Comment: 4 pages, 6 figures. Presented as a talk on the conference '7th INTEGRAL/BART Workshop 14 -18 April 2010, Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic'. Published in Acta Polytechnic

New extractive configuration separating azeotropic mixture in semi-batch way

A new variant of batch extractive distillation, the so-called inverse-fed batch extractive distillation is presented. The total amount of the entrainer is pre-loaded to the boiler, and the mixture charge to be separated is continuously fed to the column in this novel configuration. The feasibility study of conventional extractive distillation was extended and a thorough study was performed to separate a maximum boiling azeotrope with intermediate boiling entrainer. The new configuration was found more efficient than the conventional one. The results of the feasibility study was validated and completed with a sensitivity analysis performed with commercial simulator software

Feasibility of extractive distillation process variants in batch rectifier column

A systematic comparison is presented about the separation tasks of azeotropic and close-boiling mixtures applying batch extractive distillation (BED) in rectifier. All the eight possible mixture types with at most a single azeotrope (minimum and maximum boiling azeotropes with heavy, light, and intermediate boiling entrainers; and close boiling mixtures with heavy and light entrainers) are compared. The main results of the feasibility studies on the hitherto unpublished cases are presented. All the cases are feasible in batch rectifier, applying BED. The operation steps are determined by the relative position of the azeotropic composition and entrainer in bubble point ranking. The main limiting parameters (F/V, N, Epremix) are also determined by the mentioned relative position; only the existence of maximum number of stages in the rectifying section is determined by the type of the azeotrope. Use of residue curves maps (RCMs) for predicting feasibility is not generally satisfactory, but profiles maps can be used instead. Studying only the total reflux case can be misleading, and should be treated with great care. The theoretical results of separation variants applying intermediate boiling entrainer were proved experimentally

Motives that Mediate the Associations Between Relationship Satisfaction, Orgasmic Difficulty, and the Frequency of Faking Orgasm

INTRODUCTION: Faking orgasm by women reportedly occurs quite frequently, with both relationship characteristics and orgasmic difficulty being significant predictors. AIM: We explored women's motives that might mediate the associations between orgasmic difficulty and relationship satisfaction on the one hand, with the frequency of faking orgasm on the other. METHODS: In a study of 360 Hungarian women who reported “ever” faking orgasm during partnered sex, we assessed the direct and indirect (mediated) associations between orgasmic difficulty, relationship satisfaction, and the frequency of faking orgasm. OUTCOMES: Determination of motives that mediate the association between orgasmic difficulty and the frequency of faking orgasm, and the association between relationship satisfaction and the frequency of faking orgasm. RESULTS: Increased orgasmic difficulty was directly related to increased frequency of faking orgasm (β = 0.37; P < .001), and each variable itself was related to a number of motives for faking orgasm. However, the only motive assessed in our study that mediated the relationship between orgasmic difficulty and the frequency of faking orgasm was insecurity about being perceived as abnormal or dysfunctional (indirect effect: β = 0.13; P < .001). A similar pattern emerged with relationship satisfaction and frequency of faking orgasm. These two variables were directly related in that lower relationship satisfaction predicted higher frequency of faking orgasm (β = -0.15; P = .008). Furthermore, while each variable itself was related to a number of motives for faking orgasm, the only motive assessed in our study that mediated the relationship between the 2 variables was insecurity about being perceived as abnormal or dysfunctional (indirect effect: β = -0.06; P = .008). CLINICAL TRANSLATION: Insecurity related to being perceived as abnormal or deficient, along with sexual communication, should be addressed in women with a history of faking orgasm but who want to cease doing so. STRENGTHS AND LIMITATIONS: The sample was relatively large and the online survey adhered to best practices. Nevertheless, bias may result in sample characteristics when recruitment is achieved primarily through social media. In addition, the cross-sectional sample prevented causal determination and represented Western-based values. CONCLUSIONS: The associations between orgasmic difficulty and faking orgasm, and between relationship satisfaction and faking orgasm, are both direct and indirect (mediated). The primary motive for mediating the indirect association between the predictor variables and the frequency of faking orgasm was the insecurity about being perceived as deficient or abnormal. Hevesi K, Horvath Z, Miklos E, et al. Motives that Mediate the Associations Between Relationship Satisfaction, Orgasmic Difficulty, and the Frequency of Faking Orgasm. Sex Med 2022;10:100568

Dihydropyridines allosterically modulate Hsp90 providing a novel mechanism for heat shock protein co-induction and neuroprotection

Chaperones play a pivotal role in protein homeostasis, but with age their ability to clear aggregated and damaged protein from cells declines. Tau pathology is a driver of a variety of neurodegenerative disease and in Alzheimer's disease (AD) it appears to be precipitated by the formation of amyloid-β (Aβ) aggregates. Aβ-peptide appears to trigger Tau hyperphosphorylation, formation of neurofibrillary tangles and neurotoxicity. Recently, dihydropyridine derivatives were shown to upregulate the heat shock response (HSR) and provide a neuroprotective effect in an APPxPS1 AD mouse model. The HSR response was only seen in diseased cells and consequently these compounds were defined as co-inducers since they upregulate chaperones and co-chaperones only when a pathological state is present. We show for compounds tested herein, that they target predominantly the C-terminal domain of Hsp90, but show some requirement for its middle-domain, and that binding stimulates the chaperones ATPase activity. We identify the site for LA1011 binding and confirm its identification by mutagenesis. We conclude, that binding compromises Hsp90's ability to chaperone, by modulating its ATPase activity, which consequently induces the HSR in diseased cells. Collectively, this represents the mechanism by which the normalization of neurofibrillary tangles, preservation of neurons, reduced tau pathology, reduced amyloid plaque, and increased dendritic spine density in the APPxPS1 Alzheimer's mouse model is initiated. Such dihydropyridine derivatives therefore represent potential pharmaceutical candidates for the therapy of neurodegenerative disease, such as AD