Bill In Hell

A humorous look at the truth of relationships between varying roles of people and the supremacy love holds

Comparative Assessment of Adaptive-Stencil Finite Difference Schemes for Hyperbolic Equations with Jump Discontinuities

High-fidelity numerical solution of hyperbolic differential equations for functions with jump discontinuities presents a particular challenge. In general, fixed-stencil high-order numerical methods are unstable at discontinuities, resulting in exponential temporal growth of dispersive errors (Gibbs phenomena). Schemes utilizing adaptive stencils have shown to be effective in simultaneously providing high-order accuracy and long-time stability. In this Thesis, the elementary formulation of adaptive-stenciling is described in the finite difference context. Basic formulations are provided for three adaptive-stenciling methods: essentially non-oscillatory (ENO), weighted essentially non-oscillatory (WENO), and energy-stable weighted essentially non-oscillatory (ESWENO) schemes. Examples are presented to display some of the relevant properties of these schemes in solving one-dimensional and two-dimensional linear and nonlinear hyperbolic differential equations with discontinuities

Synaptic metaplasticity underlies tetanic potentiation in Lymnaea: a novel paradigm

We present a mathematical model which explains and interprets a novel form of short-term potentiation, which was found to be use-, but not time-dependent, in experiments done on Lymnaea neurons. The high degree of potentiation is explained using a model of synaptic metaplasticity, while the use-dependence (which is critically reliant on the presence of kinase in the experiment) is explained using a model of a stochastic and bistable biological switch.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, to appear in PLoS One (2013

High-Fidelity Simulation of Compressible Flows for Hypersonic Propulsion Applications

In the first part of this dissertation, the scalar filtered mass density function (SFMDF) methodology is implemented into the computer code US3D. The SFMDF is a subgrid scale closure and is simulated via a Lagrangian Monte Carlo solver. US3D is an Eulerian finite volume code and has proven very effective for compressible flow simulations. The resulting SFMDF-US3D code is employed for large eddy simulation (LES) of compressible turbulent flows on unstructured meshes. Simulations are conducted of subsonic and supersonic flows. The consistency and accuracy of the simulated results are assessed along with appraisal of the overall performance of the methodology. In the second part of this dissertation, a new methodology is developed for accurate capturing of discontinuities in multi-block finite difference simulations of hyperbolic partial differential equations. The fourth-order energy-stable weighted essentially non-oscillatory (ESWENO) scheme on closed domains is combined with simultaneous approximation term (SAT) weak interface and boundary conditions. The capability of the methodology is demonstrated for accurate simulations in the presence of significant and abrupt changes in grid resolution between neighboring subdomains. Results are presented for the solutions of linear scalar hyperbolic wave equations and the Euler equations in one and two dimensions. Strong discontinuities are passed across subdomain interfaces without significant distortions. It is demonstrated that the methodology provides stable and accurate solutions even when large differences in the grid-spacing exist, whereas strong imposition of the interface conditions causes noticeable oscillations

Center of mass rotation and vortices in an attractive Bose gas

The rotational properties of an attractively interacting Bose gas are studied using analytical and numerical methods. We study perturbatively the ground state phase space for weak interactions, and find that in an anharmonic trap the rotational ground states are vortex or center of mass rotational states; the crossover line separating these two phases is calculated. We further show that the Gross-Pitaevskii equation is a valid description of such a gas in the rotating frame and calculate numerically the phase space structure using this equation. It is found that the transition between vortex and center of mass rotation is gradual; furthermore the perturbative approach is valid only in an exceedingly small portion of phase space. We also present an intuitive picture of the physics involved in terms of correlated successive measurements for the center of mass state.Comment: version2, 17 pages, 5 figures (3 eps and 2 jpg

A VLBA Search for a Stimulated Recombination Line from the Accretion Region in NGC1275

The radio source 3C84, in NGC1275, has a two sided structure on parsec scales. The northern feature, presumed to be associated with a jet moving away from the Earth, shows strong evidence for free-free absorption. The ionized gas responsible for that absorption would be a source of detectable stimulated recombination line emission for a wide range of physical conditions. The VLBA has been used to search for the H65$\alpha$ hydrogen recombination line. The line is only expected to be seen against the northern feature which contains a small fraction of the total radio flux density. This spatial discrimination significantly aids the search for a weak line. No line was seen, with upper limits of roughly 15% of the continuum over a velocity range of 1486 km/s with resolutions up to 6.6 km/s. In the absence of a strong radiation field, this would imply that the free-free absorbing gas has a wide velocity width, is moving rapidly relative to the systemic velocity, or is concentrated in a thin, high density structure. All of these possibilities are reasonably likely close to an AGN. However, in the intense radiation environment of the AGN, even considering only the radiation we actually observe passing through the free-free absorbing gas, the non-detection is probably assured by a combination of saturation and radiation damping.Comment: 14 pages with 4 postscript figures. Accepted for publication in the April 2003 Astronomical Journa