Node synchronization schemes for the Big Viterbi Decoder

The Big Viterbi Decoder (BVD), currently under development for the DSN, includes three separate algorithms to acquire and maintain node and frame synchronization. The first measures the number of decoded bits between two consecutive renormalization operations (renorm rate), the second detects the presence of the frame marker in the decoded bit stream (bit correlation), while the third searches for an encoded version of the frame marker in the encoded input stream (symbol correlation). A detailed account of the operation is given, as well as performance comparison, of the three methods

Molecular dynamics study of nanoparticle stability at liquid interfaces : effect of nanoparticle-solvent interaction and capillary waves

While the interaction of colloidal particles (sizes in excess of 100 nm) with liquid interfaces may be understood in terms of continuum models, which are grounded in macroscopic properties such as surface and line tensions, the behaviour of nanoparticles at liquid interfaces may be more complex. Recent simulations [D. L. Cheung and S. A. F. Bon, Phys. Rev. Lett. 102, 066103 (2009)] of nanoparticles at an idealised liquid-liquid interface showed that the nanoparticle-interface interaction range was larger than expected due, in part, to the action of thermal capillary waves. In this paper, molecular dynamics simulations of a Lennard-Jones nanoparticle in a binary Lennard-Jones mixture are used to confirm that these previous results hold for more realistic models. Furthermore by including attractive interactions between the nanoparticle and the solvent, it is found that the detachment energy decreases as the nanoparticle-solvent attraction increases. Comparison between the simulation results and recent theoretical predictions [H. Lehle and M. Oettel, J. Phys. Condens. Matter 20, 404224 (2008)] shows that for small particles the incorporation of capillary waves into the predicted effective nanoparticle-interface interaction improves agreement between simulation and theory

X-ray Emitting GHz-Peaked Spectrum Galaxies: Testing a Dynamical-Radiative Model with Broad-Band Spectra

In a dynamical-radiative model we recently developed to describe the physics of compact, GHz-Peaked-Spectrum (GPS) sources, the relativistic jets propagate across the inner, kpc-sized region of the host galaxy, while the electron population of the expanding lobes evolves and emits synchrotron and inverse-Compton (IC) radiation. Interstellar-medium gas clouds engulfed by the expanding lobes, and photoionized by the active nucleus, are responsible for the radio spectral turnover through free-free absorption (FFA) of the synchrotron photons. The model provides a description of the evolution of the spectral energy distribution (SED) of GPS sources with their expansion, predicting significant and complex high-energy emission, from the X-ray to the gamma-ray frequency domain. Here, we test this model with the broad-band SEDs of a sample of eleven X-ray emitting GPS galaxies with Compact-Symmetric-Object (CSO) morphology, and show that: (i) the shape of the radio continuum at frequencies lower than the spectral turnover is indeed well accounted for by the FFA mechanism; (ii) the observed X-ray spectra can be interpreted as non-thermal radiation produced via IC scattering of the local radiation fields off the lobe particles, providing a viable alternative to the thermal, accretion-disk dominated scenario. We also show that the relation between the hydrogen column densities derived from the X-ray (N_H) and radio (N_HI) data of the sources is suggestive of a positive correlation, which, if confirmed by future observations, would provide further support to our scenario of high-energy emitting lobes.Comment: 29 pages, 3 figures, 6 tables; to appear in ApJ. A few clarifications included, according to referee's suggestion

Using Adobe Flash Lite on mobile phones for psychological research: reaction time measurement reliability and inter-device variability

Mobile telephones have significant potential for use in psychological research, possessing unique characteristics—not least their ubiquity—that may make them useful tools for psychologists. We examined whether it is possible to measure reaction times (RTs) accurately using Adobe Flash Lite on mobile phones. We ran simple and choice RT experiments on two widely available mobile phones, a Nokia 6110 Navigator and a Sony Ericsson W810i, using a wireless application protocol (WAP) connection to access the Internet from the devices. RTs were compared within subjects with those obtained using a Linux-based millisecond-accurate measurement system. Results show that measured RTs were significantly longer on mobile devices, and that overall RTs and distribution of RTs varied across device

Re-parameterization Invariance in Fractional Flux Periodicity

We analyze a common feature of a nontrivial fractional flux periodicity in two-dimensional systems. We demonstrate that an addition of fractional flux can be absorbed into re-parameterization of quantum numbers. For an exact fractional periodicity, all the electronic states undergo the re-parameterization, whereas for an approximate periodicity valid in a large system, only the states near the Fermi level are involved in the re-parameterization.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, minor changes, final version to appear in J. Phys. Soc. Jp

The Scaling Behavior of Classical Wave Transport in Mesoscopic Media at the Localization Transition

The propagation of classical wave in disordered media at the Anderson localization transition is studied. Our results show that the classical waves may follow a different scaling behavior from that for electrons. For electrons, the effect of weak localization due to interference of recurrent scattering paths is limited within a spherical volume because of electron-electron or electron-phonon scattering, while for classical waves, it is the sample geometry that determine the amount of recurrent scattering paths that contribute. It is found that the weak localization effect is weaker in both cubic and slab geometry than in spherical geometry. As a result, the averaged static diffusion constant D(L) scales like ln(L)/L in cubic or slab geometry and the corresponding transmission follows ~ln L/L^2. This is in contrast to the behavior of D(L)~1/L and ~1/L^2 obtained previously for electrons or spherical samples. For wave dynamics, we solve the Bethe-Salpeter equation in a disordered slab with the recurrent scattering incorporated in a self-consistent manner. All of the static and dynamic transport quantities studied are found to follow the scaling behavior of D(L). We have also considered position-dependent weak localization effects by using a plausible form of position-dependent diffusion constant D(z). The same scaling behavior is found, i.e., ~ln L/L^2.Comment: 11 pages, 12 figures. Submitted to Phys. Rev. B on 3 May 200

Fermi LAT Gamma-ray Detections of Classical Novae V1369 Centauri 2013 and V5668 Sagittarii 2015

We report the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) detections of high-energy (>100 MeV) gamma-ray emission from two recent optically bright classical novae, V1369 Centauri 2013 and V5668 Sagittarii 2015. At early times, Fermi target-of-opportunity observations prompted by their optical discoveries provided enhanced LAT exposure that enabled the detections of gamma-ray onsets beginning ~2 days after their first optical peaks. Significant gamma-ray emission was found extending to 39-55 days after their initial LAT detections, with systematically fainter and longer duration emission compared to previous gamma-ray detected classical novae. These novae were distinguished by multiple bright optical peaks that encompassed the timespans of the observed gamma rays. The gamma-ray light curves and spectra of the two novae are presented along with representative hadronic and leptonic models, and comparisons to other novae detected by the LAT are discussed.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figures, 4 tables, ApJ accepte

Effect of miR-146a/bFGF/PEG-PEI Nanoparticles on Inflammation Response and Tissue Regeneration of Human Dental Pulp Cells

published_or_final_versio

Identifying Young Brown Dwarfs Using Gravity-Sensitive Spectral Features

We report the initial results of the Brown Dwarf Spectroscopic Survey Gravity Project, to study gravity sensitive features as indicators of youth in brown dwarfs. Low-resolution (R~2000) J-band and optical (R~1000) observations using NIRSPEC and LRIS at the W.M. Keck Observatory reveal transitions of TiO, VO, K I, Na I, Cs I, Rb I, CaH, and FeH. By comparing these features in late-type giants and in old field dwarfs we show that they are sensitive to the gravity (g = GM/R^2) of the object. Using low-gravity spectral signatures as age indicators, we observed and analyzed J-band and optical spectra of two young brown dwarfs, G 196-3B (20-300 Myr) and KPNO Tau-4 (1-2 Myr), and two possible low mass brown dwarfs in the sigma Orionis cluster (3-7 Myr). We report the identification of the phi bands of TiO near 1.24 microns and the A-X band of VO near 1.18 microns together with extremely weak J-band lines of K I in KPNO-Tau4. This is the first detection of TiO and VO in the J-band in a sub-stellar mass object. The optical spectrum of KPNO-Tau4 exhibits weak K I and Na I lines, weak absorption by CaH, and strong VO bands, also signatures of a lower gravity atmosphere. G 196-3B shows absorption features in both wavelength regions like those of KPNO-Tau4 suggesting that its age and mass are at the lower end of published estimates. Whereas sigma Ori 51 appears to be consistent with a young sub-stellar object, sigma Ori 47 shows signatures of high gravity most closely resembling an old L1.5/L0, and can not be a member of the sigma Orionis cluster.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures. To appear in the January 10, 2004 issue of the Astrophysical Journa

Comparison of chemical profiles and effectiveness between Erxian decoction and mixtures of decoctions of its individual herbs : a novel approach for identification of the standard chemicals

Acknowledgements This study was partially supported by grants from the Seed Funding Programme for Basic Research (Project Number 201211159146 and 201411159213), the University of Hong Kong. We thank Mr Keith Wong and Ms Cindy Lee for their technical assistances.Peer reviewedPublisher PD