Abstract: Most studies investigating human lumbar vertebral trabecular bone (HVTB) mechanical property-density relationships have presented results for the superior-inferior (SI), or “ on-axis” direction. Equivalent, directly measured data from mechanical testing in the transverse (TR) direction are sparse and quantitative computed tomography (QCT) density-dependent variations in the anisotropy ratio of HVTB have not been adequately studied. The current study aimed to investigate the dependence of HVTB mechanical anisotropy ratio on QCT density by quantifying the empirical relationships between QCT-based apparent density of HVTB and its apparent compressive mechanical propertieselastic modulus (E-app), yield strength (sigma(y)), and yield strain (epsilon(y))-in the SI and TR directions for future clinical QCT-based continuum finite element modeling of HVTB. A total of 51 cylindrical cores (33 axial and 18 transverse) were extracted from four L1 human lumbar cadaveric vertebrae. Intact vertebrae were scanned in a clinical resolution computed tomography (CT) scanner prior to specimen extraction to obtain QCT density, rho(CT). Additionally, physically measured apparent density, computed as ash weight over wet, bulk volume, rho(app), showed significant correlation with rho(CT) [rho(CT) = 1.0568 x rho(app), r = 0.86]. Specimens were compression tested at room temperature using the Zetos bone loading and bioreactor system. Apparent elastic modulus (E-app) and yield strength (sigma(y)) were linearly related to the rho(CT) in the axial direction [E-SI = 1493.8 x (rho(CT)), r = 0.77, p < 0.01; sigma(Y,SI) = 6.9 x (rho(CT)) = 0.13, r = 0.76, p < 0.01] while a power-law relation provided the best fit in the transverse direction [E-TR 3349.1 x (rho(CT))(1.94), r = 0.89, p < 0.01; sigma(Y,TR) 18.81 x (rho(CT)) 1.83, r = 0.83, p < 0.01]. No significant correlation was found between epsilon(y) and rho(CT) in either direction. E-app and sigma(y) in the axial direction were larger compared to the transverse direction by a factor of 3.2 and 2.3, respectively, on average. Furthermore, the degree of anisotropy decreased with increasing density. Comparatively, epsilon(y) exhibited only a mild, but statistically significant anisotropy: transverse strains were larger than those in the axial direction by 30%, on average. Ability to map apparent mechanical properties in the transverse direction, in addition to the axial direction, from CT-based densitometric measures allows incorporation of transverse properties in finite element models based on clinical CT data, partially offsetting the inability of continuum models to accurately represent trabecular architectural variations.

Abstract: The density classification problem on graphs consists in finding a local dynamics such that, given a graph and an initial configuration of 0's and 1's assigned to the nodes of the graph, the dynamics converge to the fixed point configuration of all 1's if the fraction of 1's is greater than the critical density (typically 1/2) and, otherwise, it converges to the all 0's fixed point configuration. To solve this problem, we follow the idea proposed in [R. Briceno, P. M. de Espanes, A. Osses and I. Rapaport, Physica D 261, 70 (2013)], where the authors designed a cellular automaton inspired by two mechanisms: diffusion and amplification. We apply this approach to different well-known graph classes: complete, regular, star, Erdos-Renyi and Barabasi-Albert graphs.

Abstract: A hot relativistic fluid is viewed as a collection of quantum objects that represent interacting elementary particles. We present a conceptual framework for deriving nonlinear equations of motion obeyed by these hypothesized objects. A uniform phenomenological prescription, to affect the quantum transition from a corresponding classical system, is invoked to derive the nonlinear Schrodinger, Klein-Gordon, and Pauli-Schrodinger and Feynman-GellMaan equations. It is expected that the emergent hypothetical nonlinear quantum mechanics would advance, in a fundamental way, both the conceptual understanding and computational abilities, particularly, in the field of extremely high energy-density physics.

Abstract: Dynamic Parallelism (DP) is a GPU programming abstraction that can make parallel computation more efficient for problems that exhibit heterogeneous workloads. With DP, GPU threads can launch kernels with more threads, recursively, producing a subdivision effect where resources are focused on the regions that exhibit more parallel work. Doing an optimal subdivision process is not trivial, as the combination of different parameters play a relevant role in the final performance of DP. Also, the current programming abstraction of DP relies on kernel recursion, which has performance overhead. This work presents a new subdivision cost model for problems that exhibit self similar density (SSD) workloads, useful for finding efficient subdivision schemes. Also, a new subdivision implementation free of recursion overhead is presented, named Adaptive Serial Kernels (ASK). Using the Mandelbrot set as a case study, the cost model shows that optimal performance is achieved when using {g -32, r -2, B -32} for the initial subdivision, recurrent subdivision and stopping size, respectively. Experimental results agree with the theoretical parameters, confirming the usability of the cost model. In terms of performance, the ASK approach runs up to -60% faster than DP in the Mandelbrot set, and up to 12x faster than a basic exhaustive implementation, whereas DP is up to 7.5x faster. In terms of energy efficiency, ASK is up to -2x and -20x more energy efficient than DP and the exhaustive approach, respectively. These results put the subdivision cost model and the ASK approach as useful tools for analyzing the potential improvement of subdivision based approaches and for developing more efficient GPU-based libraries or fine-tune specific codes in research teams.

Abstract: The K-type star TOI-2525 has an estimated mass of M = 0.849(-0.033)(+0.024) M-circle dot and radius of R = 0.785(-0.007)(+0.007) R-circle dot observed by the TESS mission in 22 sectors (within sectors 1 and 39). The TESS light curves yield significant transit events of two companions, which show strong transit timing variations (TTVs) with a semiamplitude of similar to 6 hr. We performed TTV dynamical and photodynamical light-curve analysis of the TESS data combined with radial velocity measurements from FEROS and PFS, and we confirmed the planetary nature of these companions. The TOI-2525 system consists of a transiting pair of planets comparable to Neptune and Jupiter with estimated dynamical masses of m(b) = 0.088(-0.004)(+0.005) and m(c) = 0.709(-0.033)(+0.034) M-Jup, radii of r(b) = 0.88(-0.02)(+0.02) and r(c) = 0.98(-0.02)(+0.02) R-Jup, and orbital periods of P-b = 23.288(-0.002)(+0.001) and P-c = 49.260(-0.001)(+0.001) days for the inner and outer planet, respectively. The period ratio is close to the 2:1 period commensurability, but the dynamical simulations of the system suggest that it is outside the mean-motion resonance (MMR) dynamical configuration. Object TOI-2525 b is among the lowest-density Neptune-mass planets known to date, with an estimated median density of rho(b) = 0.174(-0.015)(+0.016) g cm(-3). The TOI-2525 system is very similar to the other K dwarf systems discovered by TESS, TOI-2202 and TOI-216, which are composed of almost identical K dwarf primaries and two warm giant planets near the 2:1 MMR.