It has been argued that a particular type of quantum-vacuum variable $q$ can provide solution to the main cosmological constant problem and possibly also give cold-dark-matter component. We now show same field may suggest new interpretation big bang, namely as quantum phase transition between topologically inequivalent vacua. These two vacua are characterized by equilibrium values $q=\ifmmode\p...

BACKGROUND Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is common among surgical patients. The STOP-Bang questionnaire is a validated screening tool with a high sensitivity. However, its moderate specificity may yield fairly high false positive rate. We hypothesized that the specific combinations of predicting factors in the STOP-Bang questionnaire would improve its specificity. METHODS After research ethic...

We generalize previous work on inhomogeneous pre-big bang cosmology by including the effect of non-trivial moduli and antisymmetric-tensor/axion fields. The general quasi-homogeneous asymptotic solution—as one approaches the big bang singularity from perturbative initial data—is given and its range of validity is discussed, allowing us to give a general quantitative estimate of the amount of in...

The focus of this paper is on the design of time optimal control profiles for flexible structures subject to deflection constraints. The benchmark floating oscillator is used to illustrate the variation in the structure of the control profile as a function of permissible deflection. The transition from a 5 switch bang-bang to a 7 switch bang-bang to finally, a 7 switch profile which includes no...