496 research outputs found
Comparison of methods for estimating continuous distributions of relaxation times
The nonparametric estimation of the distribution of relaxation times approach
is not as frequently used in the analysis of dispersed response of dielectric
or conductive materials as are other immittance data analysis methods based on
parametric curve fitting techniques. Nevertheless, such distributions can yield
important information about the physical processes present in measured
material. In this letter, we apply two quite different numerical inversion
methods to estimate the distribution of relaxation times for glassy \lila\
dielectric frequency-response data at 225 \kelvin. Both methods yield unique
distributions that agree very closely with the actual exact one accurately
calculated from the corrected bulk-dispersion Kohlrausch model established
independently by means of parametric data fit using the corrected modulus
formalism method. The obtained distributions are also greatly superior to those
estimated using approximate functions equations given in the literature.Comment: 4 pages and 4 figure
Improving Trip- and Slip-Resisting Skills in Older People: Perturbation Dose Matters
Aging negatively affects balance recovery responses after trips and slips. We hypothesize that older people can benefit from brief treadmill-based trip and slip perturbation exposure despite reduced muscular capacities, but with neuropathology, their responsiveness to these perturbations will be decreased. Thus, to facilitate long-term benefits and their generalizability to everyday life, one needs to consider the individual threshold for perturbation dose.
This is a non-final version of an article published in final form in Exercise and Sport Sciences Review
Glassy dynamics in thin films of polystyrene
Glassy dynamics was investigated for thin films of atactic polystyrene by
complex electric capacitance measurements using dielectric relaxation
spectroscopy. During the isothermal aging process the real part of the electric
capacitance increased with time, whereas the imaginary part decreased with
time. It follows that the aging time dependences of real and imaginary parts of
the electric capacitance were primarily associated with change in volume (film
thickness) and dielectric permittivity, respectively. Further, dielectric
permittivity showed memory and rejuvenation effects in a similar manner to
those observed for poly(methyl methacrylate) thin films. On the other hand,
volume did not show a strong rejuvenation effect.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures. Phys. Rev. E (in press
Retention of gait stability improvements over 1.5 years in older adults:effects of perturbation exposure and triceps surae neuromuscular exercise
The plantarflexors play a crucial role in recovery from sudden disturbances to gait. The objective of this study was to investigate whether medium (months)- or long(years)-term exercise-induced enhancement of triceps surae (TS) neuromuscular capacities affects older adults' ability to retain improvements in reactive gait stability during perturbed walking acquired from perturbation training sessions. Thirty-four adult women (65 +/- 7 yr) were recruited to a perturbation training group (n = 13) or a group that additionally completed 14 wk of TS neuromuscular exercise (n = 21), 12 of whom continued with the exercise for 1.5 yr. The margin of stability (MoS) was analyzed at touchdown of the perturbed step and the first recovery step following eight separate unexpected trip perturbations during treadmill walking. TS muscle-tendon unit mechanical properties and motor skill performance were assessed with ultrasonography and dynamometry. Two perturbation training sessions (baseline and after 14 wk) caused an improvement in the reactive gait stability to the perturbations (increased MoS) in both groups. The perturbation training group retained the reactive gait stability improvements acquired over 14 wk and over 1.5 yr. with a minor decay over time. Despite the improvements in TS capacities in the additional exercise group. no benefits for the reactive gait stability following perturbations were identified. Therefore, older adults' neuromotor system shows rapid plasticity to repeated unexpected perturbations and an ability to retain these adaptations in reactive gait stability over a long time period, but an additional exercise-related enhancement of TS capacities seems not to further improve these effects. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Older adults' neuromotor system shows rapid plasticity to repeated exposure to unexpected perturbations to gait and an ability to retain the majority of these adaptations in reactive recovery responses over a prolonged time period of 1.5 yr. However, an additional exercise-related enhancement of TS neuromuscular capacities is not necessarily transferred to the recovery behavior during unexpected perturbations to gait in older adults
Ion and polymer dynamics in polymer electrolytes PPO-LiClO4: II. 2H and 7Li NMR stimulated-echo experiment
We use 2H NMR stimulated-echo spectroscopy to measure two-time correlation
functions characterizing the polymer segmental motion in polymer electrolytes
PPO-LiClO4 near the glass transition temperature Tg. To investigate effects of
the salt on the polymer dynamics, we compare results for different ether oxygen
to lithium ratios, namely, 6:1, 15:1, 30:1 and infinity. For all compositions,
we find nonexponential correlation functions, which can be described by a
Kohlrausch function. The mean correlation times show quantitatively that an
increase of the salt concentration results in a strong slowing down of the
segmental motion. Consistently, for the high 6:1 salt concentration, a high
apparent activation energy E_a=4.1eV characterizes the temperature dependence
of the mean correlation times at Tg < T< 1.1T_g, while smaller values E_a=2.5eV
are observed for moderate salt contents. The correlation functions are most
nonexponential for 15:1 PPO-LiClO4, whereas the stretching is reduced for
higher and lower salt concentrations. A similar dependence of the correlation
functions on the evolution time in the presence and in the absence of ions
indicates that addition of salt hardly affects the reorientational mechanism.
For all compositions, mean jump angles of about 15 degree characterize the
segmental reorientation. In addition, comparison of results from 2H and 7Li NMR
stimulated-echo experiments suggests a coupling of ion and polymer dynamics in
15:1 PPO-LiClO4.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figure
History Memorized and Recalled upon Glass Transition
The memory effect upon glassification is studied in the glass to rubber
transition of vulcanized rubber with the strain as a controlling parameter. A
phenomenological model is proposed taking the history of the temperature and
the strain into account, by which the experimental results are interpreted. The
data and the model demonstrate that the glassy state memorizes the time-course
of strain upon glassification, not as a single parameter but as the history
itself. The data also show that the effect of irreversible deformation in the
glassy state is beyond the scope of the present model.
Authors' remark: The title of the paper in the accepted version is above. The
title appeared in PRL is the one changed by a Senior Assistant Editor after
acceptance of the paper. The recovery of the title was rejected in the
correction process.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
B595: An Illustrated Review of Apple Virus Diseases
The writers have attempted to review the available literature on the subject and to organize it in an orderly fashion. The name, symptomatology, host range, and geographic distribution are given for each virus disease. Where it was possible illustrations of each disorder have also been included. This bulletin addresses the following apple virus diseases: apple mosaic, flat limb, rubbery wood, stem pitting, spy 227 apple reaction, dwarf fruit and decline, chat fruit, chlorotic leaf spot, leaf pucker, dapple apple, false sting and green crinkle, green mottle, ring spot, star cracking, scar skin, rough skin, apple proliferation, rosettehttps://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/aes_bulletin/1068/thumbnail.jp
Aspects of topology of condensates and knotted solitons in condensed matter systems
The knotted solitons introduced by Faddeev and Niemi is presently a subject
of great interest in particle and mathematical physics. In this paper we give a
condensed matter interpretation of the recent results of Faddeev and Niemi.Comment: v2: Added a reference to the paper E. Babaev, L.D. Faddeev and A.J.
Niemi cond-mat/0106152 where an exact equivalence was shown between the
two-condensate Ginzburg-Landau model and a version of Faddeev model.
Miscelaneous links related to knotted solitons are available at the author
homepage at http://www.teorfys.uu.se/PEOPLE/egor/ . Animations of knotted
solitons by Hietarinta and Salo are available at
http://users.utu.fi/h/hietarin/knots/c45_p2.mp
- …