Free Energy of Anisotropic Strangeon Stars

Can pulsar-like compact objects release further huge free energy besides the kinematic energy of rotation?This is actually relevant to the equation of state of cold supra-nuclear matter,which is still under hot debate.Enormous energy is surely needed to understand various observations,such asγ-ray bursts,fast radio bursts and softγ-ray repeaters.In this paper,the elastic/gravitational free energy of solid strangeon stars is revisited for strangeon stars,with two anisotropic models to calculate in general relativity.It is found that huge free energy(>10^(46)erg)could be released via starquakes,given an extremely small anisotropy((p_(t)-p_(r))/p_(r)~10^(-4),with pt/pr the tangential/radial pressure),implying that pulsar-like stars could have great potential of free energy release without extremely strong magnetic fields in the solid strangeon star model.

General anesthetic agents induce neurotoxicity through oligodendrocytes in the developing brain

General anesthetic agents can impact brain function through interactions with neurons and their effects on glial cells.Oligodendrocytes perform essential roles in the central nervous system,including myelin sheath formation,axonal metabolism,and neuroplasticity regulation.They are particularly vulnerable to the effects of general anesthetic agents resulting in impaired proliferation,differentiation,and apoptosis.Neurologists are increasingly interested in the effects of general anesthetic agents on oligodendrocytes.These agents not only act on the surface receptors of oligodendrocytes to elicit neuroinflammation through modulation of signaling pathways,but also disrupt metabolic processes and alter the expression of genes involved in oligodendrocyte development and function.In this review,we summarize the effects of general anesthetic agents on oligodendrocytes.We anticipate that future research will continue to explore these effects and develop strategies to decrease the incidence of adverse reactions associated with the use of general anesthetic agents.

Extended wet sieving method for determination of complete particle size distribution of general soils

The traditional standard wet sieving method uses steel sieves with aperture?0.063 mm and can only determine the particle size distribution(PSD)of gravel and sand in general soil.This paper extends the traditional method and presents an extended wet sieving method.The extended method uses both the steel sieves and the nylon filter cloth sieves.The apertures of the cloth sieves are smaller than 0.063 mm and equal 0.048 mm,0.038 mm,0.014 mm,0.012 mm,0.0063 mm,0.004 mm,0.003 mm,0.002 mm,and 0.001 mm,respectively.The extended method uses five steps to separate the general soil into many material sub-groups of gravel,sand,silt and clay with known particle size ranges.The complete PSD of the general soil is then calculated from the dry masses of the individual material sub-groups.The extended method is demonstrated with a general soil of completely decomposed granite(CDG)in Hong Kong,China.The silt and clay materials with different particle size ranges are further examined,checked and verified using stereomicroscopic observation,physical and chemical property tests.The results further confirm the correctness of the extended wet sieving method.

Rotating Massive Strangeon Stars and X-Ray Plateau of Short GRBs

Strangeon stars,which are proposed to describe the nature of pulsar-like compact stars,have passed various observational tests.The maximum mass of a non-rotating strangeon star could be high,which implies that the remnants of binary strangeon star mergers could even be long-lived massive strangeon stars.We study rigidly rotating strangeon stars in the slowly rotating approximation,using the Lennard-Jones model for the equation of state.Rotation can significantly increase the maximum mass of strangeon stars with unchanged baryon numbers,enlarging the mass-range of long-lived strangeon stars.During spin-down after merger,the decrease of radius of the remnant will lead to the release of gravitational energy.Taking into account the efficiency of converting the gravitational energy luminosity to the observed X-ray luminosity,we find that the gravitational energy could provide an alternative energy source for the plateau emission of X-ray afterglow.The fitting results of X-ray plateau emission of some short gamma-ray bursts suggest that the magnetic dipole field strength of the remnants can be much smaller than that of expected when the plateau emission is powered only by spin-down luminosity of magnetars.

General anesthetic agents induce neurotoxicity through astrocytes

Neuroscientists have recognized the importance of astrocytes in regulating neurological function and their influence on the release of glial transmitters.Few studies,however,have focused on the effects of general anesthetic agents on neuroglia or astrocytes.Astrocytes can also be an important target of general anesthetic agents as they exert not only sedative,analgesic,and amnesic effects but also mediate general anesthetic-induced neurotoxicity and postoperative cognitive dysfunction.Here,we analyzed recent advances in understanding the mechanism of general anesthetic agents on astrocytes,and found that exposure to general anesthetic agents will destroy the morphology and proliferation of astrocytes,in addition to acting on the receptors on their surface,which not only affect Ca^(2+)signaling,inhibit the release of brain-derived neurotrophic factor and lactate from astrocytes,but are even involved in the regulation of the pro-and anti-inflammatory processes of astrocytes.These would obviously affect the communication between astrocytes as well as between astrocytes and neighboring neurons,other neuroglia,and vascular cells.In this review,we summarize how general anesthetic agents act on neurons via astrocytes,and explore potential mechanisms of action of general anesthetic agents on the nervous system.We hope that this review will provide a new direction for mitigating the neurotoxicity of general anesthetic agents.

Variable Stars in the 50BiN Open Cluster Survey.Ⅲ.NGC 884

Open clusters are the basic building blocks that serve as a laboratory for the study of young stellar populations in the Milky Way.Variable stars in open clusters provide a unique way to accurately probe the internal structure,temporal and dynamical evolutionary stages of individual stars and the host cluster.The most powerful tool for such studies is time-domain photometric observations.This paper follows the route of our previous work,concentrating on a photometric search for variable stars in NGC 884.The target cluster is the companion of NGC869,forming the well-known double cluster system that is gravitationally bound.From the observation run in 2016 November,a total of 9247 B-band CCD images and 8218Ⅴ-band CCD images were obtained.We detected a total of 15 stars with variability in visual brightness,including five Be stars,three eclipsing binaries,and seven of unknown types.Two new variable stars were discovered in this work.We also compared the variable star content of NGC 884 with its companion NGC 869.

Spectroscopic Observations of Ten Galactic Wolf-Rayet Stars at Bosscha Observatory:Determination of Stellar Parameters and Mass-loss Rates

We present optical spectra of 10 Galactic Wolf-Rayet(WR)stars that consist of five WN and five WC stars.The optical observation was conducted using a low-resolution spectrograph NEO-R1000(λ/Δλ~1000)at GAO-ITB RTS(27.94 cm,F/10.0),Bosscha Observatory,Lembang.We implemented stellar atmosphere Postdam Wolf-Rayet(PoWR)grid modeling to derive stellar parameters.The normalized optical spectrum can be used to find the best model from the available PoWR grid,then we could derive stellar temperature and transformation radius.To derive luminosity,stellar radius and color excess,we conducted a Spectral Energy Distribution(SED)analysis with additional data on the near-ultraviolet spectrum from the International Ultraviolet Explorer(IUE)database,and UBV and 2MASS JHK broadband filter data.Additional analysis to derive asymptotic terminal wind velocity was conducted from the P-Cygni profile analysis of the high-resolution IUE ultraviolet spectrum.With previously derived parameters,we could determine the mass loss rate of the WR stars.Furthermore,we compared our results with previous work that used PoWR code and the differences are not more than 20%.We conclude that the PoWR spectral grid is sufficient to derive WR stellar parameters quickly and could provide more accurate initial parameter input to the PoWR program code.

An Asymmetric Galactic Stellar Disk Traced by OB-type Stars from LAMOST DR7

Using 9943 OB-type stars from LAMOST DR7 in the solar neighborhood,we fit the vertical stellar density profile with the model including a single exponential distribution at different positions(R,Φ).The distributions of the scale heights and scale length show that the young disk traced by the OB-type stars is not axisymmetric.The scale length decreases versus the azimuthal angleΦ,i.e.,from.■kpc withΦ=-3°to■kpc withΦ=9°.Meanwhile we find signal of non-symmetry in the distribution of the scale height of the north and south of the disk plane.The scale height in the north side shows signal of flaring of the disk,while that of the south disk stays almost constant around h_(s)=130 pc.The distribution of the displaceeent of the disk plane Z_(0)also shows variance versus the azimuthal angleΦ,which displays significant differences with the warp model constrained by the Cepheid stars.We also test different values for the position of the Sun,and the distance between the Sun and the Galactic center affects the scale heights and the displacement of the disk significantly,but that does not change our conclusion that the disk is not axisymmetric.

On the Identification of N-rich Metal-poor Field Stars with Future Chinese Space Station Telescope

During the long term evolution of globular clusters(GCs), some member stars are lost to the field. The recently found nitrogen-rich(N-rich) metal-poor field stars are promising candidates of these GC escapees, since N enhancement is the fingerprint of chemically enhanced populations in GCs. In this work, we discuss the possibility of identifying N-rich metal-poor field stars with the upcoming Chinese Space Station Telescope(CSST). We focus on the main survey camera with NUV, u, g, r, i, z, y filters and slitless spectrograph with a resolution about 200.The combination of UV sensitive equipment and prominent N-related molecular lines in the UV band bodes well for the identification: the color–color diagram of(u-g) versus(g-r) is capable of separating N-rich field stars from normal halo stars, if metallicity can be estimated without using the information on u-band photometry.Besides, the synthetic spectra show that a signal-to-noise ratio of 10 is sufficient to identify N-rich field stars. In the near future, a large sample of N-rich field stars found by CSST, combined with state-of-the-art N-body simulations will be crucial to deciphering GC-Galaxy co-evolution.

Probing the Galactic Halo with RR Lyrae Stars.VI.The Radial Velocity Curve Templates of RRc Stars

We present radial velocity(RV)curve templates of RR Lyrae first-overtone(RRc)stars constructed with the Mg I b triplet and Hαlines using time-domain Medium-Resolution Survey spectra of seven RRc stars from Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope(LAMOST)Data Release 9.Additionally,we derive the relation between the stellar RV curve amplitudes and g-band light curve amplitudes from Zwicky Transient Facility(ZTF)public survey.For those RRc stars without ZTF g-band light curves,we provide the conversions from the light curve amplitudes in ZTF r-and i-bands,Gaia G-band,and V-band from the All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae to those in ZTF g-band.We validate our RV curve templates using the RRc star SV Scl and find the uncertainties of systemic RV are less than 2.11 km s~(-1)and 6.08 km s~(-1)based on the Mg I b triplet and Hαlines,respectively.We calculate the systemic RVs of 30 RRc stars using the RV curve templates constructed with the Mg I b triplet and Hαlines and find the systemic RVs are comparable with each other.This RV curve template will be particularly useful for obtaining the systemic RV of RRc using the LAMOST spectroscopy.

A nonlocal dispersal and time delayed HIV infection model with general incidences

Biologically,because of the impact of reproduction period and nonlocal dispersal of HIV-infected cells,time delay and spatial heterogeneity should be considered.In this paper,we establish an HIV infection model with nonlocal dispersal and infection age.Moreover,applying the theory of Fourier transformation and von Foerster rule,we transform the model to an integrodifferential equation with nonlocal time delay and dispersal.The well-posedness,positivity,and boundedness of the solution for the model are studied.

Period–Luminosity Relationship forδScuti Stars Revisited

The Gaia DR3 parallax approach was used to estimate the absolute parameters of 2375δScuti stars from the ASAS catalog.The selected stars have a variety of observational characteristics,with a higher than 80%probability of beingδScuti stars.We have displayed all the stars in the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram along with theδScuti instability strip,the Zero Age Main Sequence and the Terminal Age Main Sequence.Then,we determined which fundamental and overtone modes each star belongs to using pulsation constant(Q)calculations.In addition,we evaluated the parameters in the Q calculation equation using three machine learning methods,which showed that surface gravity and temperature have the greatest effect on its calculation.The Period-Luminosity(P-L)relationship of theδScuti stars was also revisited.Eventually,using least squares linear regression,we made four linear fits for fundamental and overtone modes and updated their relationships.

Detecting short-term gravitational waves from post-merger hyper-massive neutron stars with a kilohertz detector

Gravitational waves emanating from binary neutron star inspirals,alongside electromagnetic transients resulting from the aftermath of the GW170817 merger,have been successfully detected.However,the intricate post-merger dynamics that bridge these two sets of observables remain enigmatic.This includes if,and when,the post-merger remnant star collapses to a black hole,and what are the necessary conditions to power a short gamma-ray burst,and other observed electromagnetic counterparts.Our focus is on the detection of gravitational wave(GW)emissions from hyper-massive neutron stars(NSs)formed through binary neutron star(BNS)mergers.Utilizing several kilohertz GW detectors,we simulate BNS mergers within the detection limits of LIGO-Virgo-KARGA O4.Our objective is to ascertain the fraction of simulated sources that may emit detectable post-merger GW signals.For kilohertz detectors equipped with a new cavity design,we estimate that approximately 1.1%-32%of sources would emit a detectable post-merger GW signal.This fraction is contingent on the mass converted into gravitational wave energy,ranging from 0.01M_(sun)to 0.1M_(sun).Furthermore,by evaluating other well-regarded proposed kilohertz GW detectors,we anticipate that the fraction can increase to as much as 2.1%-61%under optimal performance conditions.

NORMALIZED SOLUTIONS FOR THE GENERAL KIRCHHOFF TYPE EQUATIONS

In the present paper,we prove the existence,non-existence and multiplicity of positive normalized solutions(λ_(c),u_(c))∈ℝ×H^(1)(ℝ^(N))to the general Kirchhoff problem-M\left(\int_{\mathbb{R}^N}\vert\nabla u\vert^2{\rm d}x\right)\Delta u+\lambda u=g(u)~\hbox{in}~\mathbb{R}^N,u\in H^1(\mathbb{R}^N),N\geq 1,satisfying the normalization constraint\int_{\mathbb{R}^N}u^2{\rm d}x=c,where M∈C([0,∞))is a given function satisfying some suitable assumptions.Our argument is not by the classical variational method,but by a global branch approach developed by Jeanjean et al.[J Math Pures Appl,2024,183:44–75]and a direct correspondence,so we can handle in a unified way the nonlinearities g(s),which are either mass subcritical,mass critical or mass supercritical.

Image Steganography by Pixel-Value Differencing Using General Quantization Ranges

A new steganographic method by pixel-value differencing(PVD)using general quantization ranges of pixel pairs’difference values is proposed.The objective of this method is to provide a data embedding technique with a range table with range widths not limited to powers of 2,extending PVD-based methods to enhance their flexibility and data-embedding rates without changing their capabilities to resist security attacks.Specifically,the conventional PVD technique partitions a grayscale image into 1×2 non-overlapping blocks.The entire range[0,255]of all possible absolute values of the pixel pairs’grayscale differences in the blocks is divided into multiple quantization ranges.The width of each quantization range is a power of two to facilitate the direct embedding of the bit information with high embedding rates.Without using power-of-two range widths,the embedding rates can drop using conventional embedding techniques.In contrast,the proposed method uses general quantization range widths,and a multiple-based number conversion mechanism is employed skillfully to implement the use of nonpower-of-two range widths,with each pixel pair being employed to embed a digit in the multiple-based number.All the message bits are converted into a big multiple-based number whose digits can be embedded into the pixel pairs with a higher embedding rate.Good experimental results showed the feasibility of the proposed method and its resistance to security attacks.In addition,implementation examples are provided,where the proposed method adopts non-power-of-two range widths and employsmultiple-based number conversion to expand the data-hiding and steganalysis-resisting capabilities of other PVD methods.

Higher-order expansions of powered extremes of logarithmic general error distribution

In this paper,Let M_(n)denote the maximum of logarithmic general error distribution with parameter v≥1.Higher-order expansions for distributions of powered extremes M_(n)^(p)are derived under an optimal choice of normalizing constants.It is shown that M_(n)^(p),when v=1,converges to the Frechet extreme value distribution at the rate of 1/n,and if v>1 then M_(n)^(p)converges to the Gumbel extreme value distribution at the rate of(loglogn)^(2)=(log n)^(1-1/v).

Intelligent Transformation: General Intelligence Theory

This paper aims to formalize a general definition of intelligence beyond human intelligence. We accomplish this by re-imagining the concept of equality as a fundamental abstraction for relation. We discover that the concept of equality = limits the sensitivity of our mathematics to abstract relationships. We propose a new relation principle that does not rely on the concept of equality but is consistent with existing mathematical abstractions. In essence, this paper proposes a conceptual framework for general interaction and argues that this framework is also an abstraction that satisfies the definition of Intelligence. Hence, we define intelligence as a formalization of generality, represented by the abstraction ∆∞Ο, where each symbol represents the concepts infinitesimal, infinite, and finite respectively. In essence, this paper proposes a General Language Model (GLM), where the abstraction ∆∞Ο represents the foundational relationship of the model. This relation is colloquially termed “The theory of everything”.

Life Origin in the Milky Way Galaxy: III. Spatial Distribution of Overheated Stars in the Solar Neighborhood

A concept of ensemble averaged stellar reactors is developed to study the dynamics of processes occurring in stars, allocated in the ~200 pc solar neighborhood. According to the effective temperature value, four stellar classes are identified, for which the correlation coefficients and standard deviation are counted. The theory of the buoyancy terrestial elements is generalized to stellar systems. It was suggested that stars are over-heated due to the shift parameters of the nuclear processes occurring inside the stars, which leads to the synthesis of transuranium elements until the achievement of a critical nuclear mass and star explosion. The heavy transuranium elements sink downward and are concentrated in the stellar depth layers. The physical explanation of the existence of the critical Chandrasekhar star limit has been offered. Based on the spatial analysis of overheated stars, it was suggested that the withdrawal of the stellar reactor from the equilibrium state is a consequence of extragalactic compression inside the galaxy arm due to the arm spirality (not to be confused with the spirality of the galaxy itself).

A NOTE ON THE GENERAL STABILIZATION OF DISCRETE FEEDBACK CONTROL FOR NON-AUTONOMOUS HYBRID NEUTRAL STOCHASTIC SYSTEMS WITH A DELAY

Discrete feedback control was designed to stabilize an unstable hybrid neutral stochastic differential delay system(HNSDDS) under a highly nonlinear constraint in the H_∞ and exponential forms.Nevertheless,the existing work just adapted to autonomous cases,and the obtained results were mainly on exponential stabilization.In comparison with autonomous cases,non-autonomous systems are of great interest and represent an important challenge.Accordingly,discrete feedback control has here been adjusted with a time factor to stabilize an unstable non-autonomous HNSDDS,in which new Lyapunov-Krasovskii functionals and some novel technologies are adopted.It should be noted,in particular,that the stabilization can be achieved not only in the routine H_∞ and exponential forms,but also the polynomial form and even a general form.

Shared decision making in rural general practices:a qualitative exploration of older rural South Australians'perceived involvement in clinical consultations with doctors

Background:Shared decision-making(SDM)implementation is a priority for Australian health systems,including general practices but it remains complex for specific groups like older rural Australians.We initiated a qualitative study with older rural Australians to explore barriers to and facilitators of SDM in local general practices.Methods:We conducted a patient-oriented research,partnering with older rural Australians,families,and health service providers in research design.Participants who visited general practices were purposively sampled from five small rural towns in South Australia.A semi-structured interview guide was used for interviews and reflexive thematic coding was conducted.Results:Telephone interviews were held with 27 participants.Four themes were identified around older rural adults’involvement in SDM:(1)Understanding of"patient involvement";(2)Positive and negative outcomes;(3)Barriers to SDM;and(4)Facilitators to SDM.Understanding of patient involvement in SDM considerably varied among participants,with some reporting their involvement was contingent on the“opportunity to ask questions”and the“treatment choices”offered to them.Alongside the opportunity for involvement,barriers such as avoidance of cultural care and a lack of continuity of care are new findings.Challenges encountered in SDM implementation also included resource constraints and time limitations in general practices.Rural knowledge of general practitioners and technology integration in consultations were viewed as potential enablers..Conclusion:Adequate resources and well-defined guidelines about the process should accompany the implementation of SDM in rural general practices of South Australia.Innovative strategies by general practitioners promoting health literacy and culturally-tailored communication approaches could increase older rural Australians'involvement in general.