F-18-FDG uptake is a reliable predictory of functional recovery of akinetic but viable infarct regions as defined by magnetic resonance imaging before and after revascularization

Identification of akinetic but viable myocardium is important for the selection of patients for coronary revascularization. In order to assess predictive values of end-diastolic wall thickness and dobutamine induced wall thickening obtained by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and [18F]Fluorodeoxyglucose uptake assessed by positron emission tomography (F-18-FDG-PET), these parameters were compared to recovery of left ventricular function after successful revascularization. Forty patients with chronic myocardial infarction and regional a- or dyskinesia by ventriculography underwent rest- and dobutamine-MRI studies (10 microg dobutamine/kg body weight/min) and F-18-FDG-PET. Viability of the infarct region was considered to be present if; 1) end-diastolic wall thickness was > or =5.5 mm; 2) dobutamine induced wall thickening > or =2 mm could be measured; and 3) normalized F-18-FDG-uptake was > or =50% in > or =50% of akinetic segments. Preserved end-diastolic wall thickness was found in 32/40 patients, functional improvement during dobutamine infusion in 26/40 patients and preserved F-18-FDG-uptake in 29/40 patients. After revascularization regional left ventricular function improved in 25/40 patients. Positive and negative predictive values and diagnostic accuracy were 78%, 100%, and 83% for preserved end-diastolic wall thickness, 92%, 93%, and 93% for dobutamine inducible contraction reserve and 86%, 100%, and 90% for preserved F-18-FDG-uptake. Quantitative assessment of dobutamine induced systolic wall thickening by MRI and F-18-FDG-uptake by PET are highly accurate techniques for the identification of viable myocardium and prediction of functional recovery after successful revascularization. Preserved end-diastolic wall thickness results in an overestimation of viable myocardium compared to functional improvement, but wall thickness <5.5 mm excludes recovery of regional function.     

Binary-black-hole encounters, gravitational bursts, and maximum final spin

The spin of the final black hole in the coalescence of nonspinning black holes is determined by the "residual" orbital angular momentum of the binary. This residual momentum consists of the orbital angular momentum that the binary is not able to shed in the process of merging. We study the angular momentum radiated, the spin of the final black hole, and the gravitational bursts in a sequence of equal mass encounters. The initial orbital configurations range from those producing an almost direct infall to others leading to numerous orbits before infall, with multiple bursts of radiation. Our sequence consists of orbits with fixed impact parameter. What varies is the initial linear momentum of the black holes. For this sequence, the final black hole of mass M_{h} gets a maximum spin parameter a/M_{h} approximately 0.823, with this maximum occurring for initial orbital angular momentum L/M_{h};{2} approximately 1.176.     

Scattering Below Critical Energy for the Radial 4D Yang-Mills Equation and for the 2D Corotational Wave Map System

Given g and f  =  gg′, we consider solutions to the following non linear wave equation :

Characterizing the influence of reinforcing resin on the structure and the mechanical response of filled isoprene rubber

In the present study, a specific type of reinforcing resin behavior is investigated using various mechanical approaches as well as microscopic techniques such as transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. Based on these observations, it could be concluded that the reinforcing resin introduces a synergistic effect with carbon black in order to strengthen the system. This is implied since the percolation threshold is significantly reduced and the morphology of the filler aggregates changes toward higher compactness, i.e., an increase of volume-to-size ratio with the addition of resin.     

Towards the Design of Optically Active Thiophene S-Oxides using Quantum Chemistry

The importance of axially chiral biaryls has risen steeply in the recent decades. This structural motif proved to be successful in catalytic asymmetric synthesis and the configuration of the biaryl axis is decisive for the biological activity. A new approach for the atroposelective synthesis of biaryls would be through a cycloaddition between an enantiopure phenyl-substituted thiophene S-oxide and an alkyne. Importantly, the chiral center of the thiophene S-oxide needs to be stable enough to avoid pyramidal inversion during the cycloaddition. Considering that the racemization of thiophene monoxides has been scarcely investigated so far, we perform a thorough quantum chemical study on the inversion barriers of a large number of chiral thiophene S-oxide derivatives. Our main goal is to identify substitution patterns leading to stable atropisomers at room temperature. Appealingly, the role of stereoelectronic effects and the position of the substituents as well as the importance of aromaticity on the pyramidal inversion barrier are elucidated for the first time.     

NIFTy 3 – Numerical Information Field Theory: A Python Framework for Multicomponent Signal Inference on HPC Clusters

NIFTy , “Numerical Information Field Theory,” is a software framework designed to ease the development and implementation of field inference algorithms. Field equations are formulated independently of the underlying spatial geometry allowing the user to focus on the algorithmic design. Under the hood, NIFTy ensures that the discretization of the implemented equations is consistent. This enables the user to prototype an algorithm rapidly in 1D and then apply it to high‐dimensional real‐world problems. This paper introduces NIFTy  3, a major upgrade to the original NIFTy  framework. NIFTy  3 allows the user to run inference algorithms on massively parallel high performance computing clusters without changing the implementation of the field equations. It supports n‐dimensional Cartesian spaces, spherical spaces, power spaces, and product spaces as well as transforms to their harmonic counterparts. Furthermore, NIFTy  3 is able to handle non‐scalar fields, such as vector or tensor fields. The functionality and performance of the software package is demonstrated with example code, which implements a mock inference inspired by a real‐world algorithm from the realm of information field theory. NIFTy  3 is open‐source software available under the GNU General Public License v3 (GPL‐3) at https://gitlab.mpcdf.mpg.de/ift/NIFTy/tree/NIFTy_3 .     

New Studies on Humphry Davy: Introduction

This special issue of Ambix brings together eight new studies on Humphry Davy together with an appreciation of the life and work of David Knight, much of whose scholarship was devoted to understanding Davy. Taken together they provide a much richer and more nuanced account of aspects of Davy’s life, showing how he and his work fitted into the very complex and difficult social, cultural and political contexts of the opening decades of the nineteenth century. Taking as our starting point Thomas Carlyle’s 1829 critique of modern science, in this introduction we weld together the themes that emerge from these papers, many of which ground their results in the project to publish Davy’s Letters. This project has provided evidence that helps us critique the disciplinary boundaries that led to Davy becoming seen mostly as a chemist, while his friend Samuel Taylor Coleridge has generally been categorised as a poet. Such boundaries are now breaking down fruitfully as these essays all illustrate in their different ways. A consequence of the new understandings being produced, is that we need to consider anew what constitutes chemistry and chemists, how reputations and commemorations are constructed, the role of audiences (especially women) in developing knowledge and the use of language and literature, which, among other things, are key elements linking chemistry with other parts of society and culture. Davy provides an excellent location by which to address the historical issues involved, giving us an opportunity to balance carefully these and other components (such as human agency) in understanding how knowledge is constructed.     

Synthesis,Hirshfeld surface analysis,luminescence and thermal properties of three first-row transition metal complexes containing 4′-hydroxy-2,2′:6′,2″-terpyridine: Application for preparation of nano metal oxides

A series of new mono- and bis-terpyridine complexes [Mn(tpyOH)Cl₂] ( 1 ), [Ni(tpyOH)₂](PF₆)₂ ( 2 ) and [Zn(tpyO)(η¹-OCOCH₃)(H₂O)]⋅3H₂O ( 4 ) containing 4′-hydroxy-2,2′:6′,2″-terpyridine (tpyOH) were synthesized and structurally characterized using elemental analysis, infrared spectroscopy and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The reaction of MnCl₂ with tpyOH in a mixture of methanol and CH₂Cl₂ resulted in the formation of 1 . The X-ray crystal structure of 1 reveals that Mn(II) is penta-coordinated by three nitrogen atoms from tpyOH and two Cl⁻ in a slightly distorted trigonal bipyramidal geometry. Complex 2 was also prepared by the reaction of nickel(II) chloride with tpyOH in a methanolic medium in the presence of NH₄PF₆. Notably, the complex [Ni(tpyOH)(tpyO)]PF₆ ( 3 ), obtained during the crystallization of 2 from dichloromethane, was characterized using X-ray crystallography which shows that six nitrogen atoms from terpyridine ligands occupy the coordination sites around the Ni(II) centre in a distorted octahedral geometry with four longer bonds and two shorter Ni N bonds. The reaction of zinc(II) acetate with tpyOH in a mixture of methanol and CH₂Cl₂ led to the formation of 4 . The crystal structure of 4 reveals the formation of penta-coordinated Zn(II) complex containing three nitrogen atoms from tpyO, a monodentate acetate ligand and one coordinated water molecule. Hirshfeld surface analyses and two-dimensional fingerprint plots show that the main interactions are O…H/H…O contacts in 1 , 3 and 4 . The thermal decomposition reactions of 1 , 2 and 4 were studied using thermogravimetric analysis in detail due to their different structures. The solution luminescence features of 1 , 2 and 4 include high-energy intense π → π* intraligand and low-energy metal-to-ligand charge transfer transitions at room temperature. The calcination of the coordination complexes led to the formation of corresponding nano metal oxides. The products were structurally characterized using infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The average particle size using Scherrer's equation was calculated to be below 50 nm.     

Hydrodynamic Limit of the Symmetric Exclusion Process on a Compact Riemannian Manifold

Journal of Statistical Physics - We consider the symmetric exclusion process on suitable random grids that approximate a compact Riemannian manifold. We prove that a class of random walks on these...