Supershell structure in alkali metal nanowires

Nanowires are formed by indenting and subsequently retracting two pieces of sodium metal. Their cross section gradually reduces upon retraction and the diameters can be obtained from the conductance. In previous work we have demonstrated that when one constructs a histogram of diameters from large numbers of indentation-retraction cycles such histograms show a periodic pattern of stable nanowire diameters due to shell structure in the conductance modes. Here, we report the observation of a modulation of this periodic pattern, in agreement with predictions of a supershell structure.     

Identification of a set of genes showing regionally enriched expression in the mouse brain

Background

We have recorded responses from single neurons in murine visual cortex to determine the effectiveness of the input from the two murine cone photoreceptor mechanisms and whether there is any unique selectivity for cone inputs at this higher region of the visual system that would support the possibility of colour vision in mice. Each eye was stimulated by diffuse light, either 370 (strong stimulus for the ultra-violet (UV) cone opsin) or 505 nm (exclusively stimulating the middle wavelength sensitive (M) cone opsin), obtained from light emitting diodes (LEDs) in the presence of a strong adapting light that suppressed the responses of rods.

Results

Single cells responded to these diffuse stimuli in all areas of striate cortex. Two types of responsive cells were encountered. One type (135/323 – 42%) had little to no spontaneous activity and responded at either the on and/or the off phase of the light stimulus with a few impulses often of relatively large amplitude. A second type (166/323 – 51%) had spontaneous activity and responded tonically to light stimuli with impulses often of small amplitude. Most of the cells responded similarly to both spectral stimuli. A few (18/323 – 6%) responded strongly or exclusively to one or the other spectral stimulus and rarely in a spectrally opponent manner.

Conclusion

Most cells in murine striate cortex receive excitatory inputs from both UV- and M-cones. A small fraction shows either strong selectivity for one or the other cone mechanism and occasionally cone opponent responses. Cells that could underlie chromatic contrast detection are present but extremely rare in murine striate cortex.     

Efficient implicit algorithm for the equations of 2-D viscous compressible flow: application to shock-boundary layer interaction

A fully implicit algorithm has been developed to time integrate the equations of 2-D compressible viscous flow. The algorithm was constructed so as to optimize computational efficiency. The time-consuming block matrix inversions usually associated with implicit algorithms have been reduced to the trivial non-iterative inversion of four sets of scalar bidiagonal matrices. Thus, the algorithm requires virtually no more computer storage than an explicit algorithm. The efficient structure of the implicit algorithm is reflected in comparative timings which slow that it requires only a factor of two more computer time per point per time step than a typical explicit algorithm. Therefore, the algorithm allows more economical solution of given flows than existing explicit methods and also allows more difficult problems to be attempted using available computer resources. Application of the algorithm to the problem of shock-boundary layer interaction produces results consistent with both experimental measurements and other calculations.     

Regimes of frictional sliding of a spring-block system

In the context of rate-and-state friction, we revisit the crossover between the creep and inertial regimes in the dynamics of a spring-block system as observed and described in the dry friction experiment of Heslot et al. (1994) and Baumberger et al. (1994). We show that the transition between the quasi-static motion of a spring-block and its dynamic motion occurs at a lower sliding velocity than that which minimises the steady-state friction coefficient. We perform a weakly nonlinear stability analysis combined with numerical studies with the continuation package Auto. In particular, attention is focused on the change of nature the Hopf bifurcation from supercritical to subcritical, as observed by Heslot et al. Comparing the results obtained for different friction laws, we conclude that the weakly nonlinear analysis provides a possible criterion for distinguishing which friction laws may be physically relevant.