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Sample records for bullet cluster 1e

  1. Cluster Bulleticity

    OpenAIRE

    Massey, Richard; Kitching, Thomas; Nagai, Daisuke

    2010-01-01

    The unique properties of dark matter are revealed during collisions between clusters of galaxies, such as the bullet cluster (1E 0657−56) and baby bullet (MACS J0025−12). These systems provide evidence for an additional, invisible mass in the separation between the distributions of their total mass, measured via gravitational lensing, and their ordinary ‘baryonic’ matter, measured via its X-ray emission. Unfortunately, the information available from these systems is limited by their rarity. C...

  2. 18 GHz SZ Measurements of the Bullet Cluster Siddharth S. Malu ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    1E0657-56, known as the 'Bullet cluster', is one of the hottest known clusters. It is a cluster collision/merger event at z ∼0.296, with the larger, westward cluster being ∼10 times the mass of the smaller 'bullet'. It is known to have a strong radio halo (Liang et al. 2000), and the Sunyaev–Zel'dovich effect (Andreani et al. 1999;.

  3. Focusing Cosmic Telescopes: Exploring Redshift z ~ 5-6 Galaxies with the Bullet Cluster 1E0657 - 56

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bradač, Maruša; Treu, Tommaso; Applegate, Douglas; Gonzalez, Anthony H.; Clowe, Douglas; Forman, William; Jones, Christine; Marshall, Phil; Schneider, Peter; Zaritsky, Dennis

    2009-12-01

    The gravitational potential of clusters of galaxies acts as a cosmic telescope allowing us to find and study galaxies at fainter limits than otherwise possible and thus probe closer to the epoch of formation of the first galaxies. We use the Bullet cluster 1E0657 - 56 (z = 0.296) as a case study, because its high mass and merging configuration makes it one of the most efficient cosmic telescopes we know. We develop a new algorithm to reconstruct the gravitational potential of the Bullet cluster based on a non-uniform adaptive grid, combining strong and weak gravitational lensing data derived from deep Hubble Space Telescope/Advanced Camera for Surveys F606W-F775W-F850LP and ground-based imaging. We exploit this improved mass map to study z ~ 5-6 Lyman break galaxies (LBGs), which we detect as dropouts. One of the LBGs is multiply imaged, providing a geometric confirmation of its high redshift, and is used to further improve our mass model. We quantify the uncertainties in the magnification map reconstruction in the intrinsic source luminosity, and in the volume surveyed, and show that they are negligible compared to sample variance when determining the luminosity function of high-redshift galaxies. With shallower and comparable magnitude limits to Hubble Ultra Deep Field (HUDF) and Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey (GOODS), the Bullet cluster observations, after correcting for magnification, probe deeper into the luminosity function of the high-redshift galaxies than GOODS and only slightly shallower than HUDF. We conclude that accurately focused cosmic telescopes are the most efficient way to sample the bright end of the luminosity function of high-redshift galaxies and—in case they are multiply imaged—confirm their redshifts. Based on observations made with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5

  4. Sunyaev-Zel'Dovich effect observations of the bullet cluster (1E 0657-56) with APEX-SZ

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Halverson, N.W.; Lanting, T.; Ade, P.A.R.; Basu, K.; Bender, A.N.; Benson, B.A.; Bertoldi, F.; Cho, H.-M.; Chon, G.; Clarke, J.; Dobbs, M.; Ferrusca, D.; Gusten, R.; Holzapfel, W.L.; Kovacs, A.; Kennedy, J.; Kermish, Z.; Kneissl, R.; Lee, A.T.; Lueker, M.; Mehl, J.; Menten, K.M.; Muders, D.; Nord, M.; Pacaud, F.; Plagge, T.; Reichardt, C.; Richards, P.L.; Schaaf, R.; Schilke, P.; Schuller, F.; Schwan, D.; Spieler, H.; Tucker, C.; Weiss, A.; Zahn, O.

    2008-07-25

    We present observations of the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect (SZE) in the Bullet cluster (1E 0657-56) using the APEX-SZ instrument at 150 GHz with a resolution of 1'. The main results are maps of the SZE in this massive, merging galaxy cluster. The cluster is detected with 23 sigma significance within the central 1' radius of the source position. The SZE map has a broadly similar morphology to that in existing X-ray maps of this system, and we find no evidence for significant contamination of the SZE emission by radio or IR sources. In order to make simple quantitative comparisons with cluster gas models derived from X-ray observations, we fit our data to an isothermal elliptical beta model, despite the inadequacy of such a model for this complex merging system. With an X-ray derived prior on the power-law index, beta = 1.04+0.16-0.10, we find a core radius rc = 142" +- 18", an axial ratio of 0.889 +- 0.072, and a central temperature decrement of -771 +- 71 muKCMB, including a +-5.5percent flux calibration uncertainty. Combining the APEX-SZ map with a map of projected electron surface density from Chandra X-ray observations, we determine the mass-weighted temperature of the cluster gas to be Tmg = 10.8 +- 0.9 keV, significantly lower than some previously reported X-ray spectroscopic temperatures. Under the assumption of an isothermal cluster gas distribution in hydrostatic equilibrium, we compute the gas mass fraction for prolate and oblate spheroidal geometries and find it to be consistent with previous results from X-ray and weak-lensing observations. This work is the first result from the APEX-SZ experiment and represents the first reported scientific result from observations with a large array of multiplexed superconducting transition-edge sensor bolometers.

  5. Generalization of Rindler Potential at Cluster Scales in Randers-Finslerian Spacetime: a Possible Explanation of the Bullet Cluster 1E0657-558?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Zhe; Li, Ming-Hua; Lin, Hai-Nan; Li, Xin

    2012-12-01

    The data of the Bullet Cluster 1E0657-558 released on November 15, 2006 reveal that the strong and weak gravitational lensing convergence κ-map has an 8σ offset from the Σ-map. The observed Σ-map is a direct measurement of the surface mass density of the Intracluster medium (ICM) gas. It accounts for 83% of the averaged mass-fraction of the system. This suggests a modified gravity theory at large distances different from Newton's inverse-square gravitational law. In this paper, as a cluster scale generalization of Grumiller's modified gravity model (Phys. Rev. Lett.105 (2010) 211303), we present a gravity model with a generalized linear Rindler potential in Randers-Finslerian spacetime without invoking any dark matter. The galactic limit of the model is qualitatively consistent with the MOND and Grumiller's. It yields approximately the flatness of the rotational velocity profile at the radial distance of several kpcs and gives the velocity scales for spiral galaxies at which the curves become flattened. Plots of convergence κ for a galaxy cluster show that the peak of the gravitational potential has chances to lie on the outskirts of the baryonic mass center. Assuming an isotropic and isothermal ICM gas profile with temperature T = 14.8 keV (which is the center value given by observations), we obtain a good match between the dynamical mass MT of the main cluster given by collisionless Boltzmann equation and that given by the King β-model. We also consider a Randers+dark matter scenario and a Λ-CDM model with the NFW dark matter distribution profile. We find that a mass ratio η between dark matter and baryonic matter about 6 fails to reproduce the observed convergence κ-map for the isothermal temperature T taking the observational center value.

  6. USING THE BULLET CLUSTER AS A GRAVITATIONAL TELESCOPE TO STUDY z ∼> 7 LYMAN BREAK GALAXIES

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hall, Nicholas; Bradač, Maruša; Gonzalez, Anthony H.; Treu, Tommaso; Clowe, Douglas; Jones, Christine; Stiavelli, Massimo; Zaritsky, Dennis; Cuby, Jean-Gabriel; Clément, Benjamin

    2012-01-01

    We use imaging obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 to search for z 850 dropouts at z ∼ 7 and J 110 dropouts at z ∼ 9 lensed by the Bullet Cluster. In total we find 10 z 850 dropouts in our 8.27 arcmin 2 field. Using magnification maps from a combined weak- and strong-lensing mass reconstruction of the Bullet Cluster and correcting for estimated completeness levels, we calculate the surface density and luminosity function of our z 850 dropouts as a function of intrinsic (accounting for magnification) magnitude. We find results consistent with published blank field surveys, despite using much shallower data, and demonstrate the effectiveness of cluster surveys in the search for z ∼ 7 galaxies.

  7. Dark matter line emission constraints from NuSTAR observations of the Bullet Cluster

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Riemer-Sørensen, S.; Wik, D.; Madejski, G.

    2015-01-01

    Some dark matter candidates, e.g., sterile neutrinos, provide observable signatures in the form of mono-energetic line emission. We present the first search for dark matter line emission in the range in a pointed observation of the Bullet Cluster with NuSTAR. We do not detect any significant line...... emission and instead we derive upper limits (95% CL) on the flux, and interpret these constraints in the context of sterile neutrinos and more generic dark matter candidates. NuSTAR does not have the sensitivity to constrain the recently claimed line detection at , but improves on the constraints...... for energies of 10–25 keV....

  8. Another shock for the Bullet cluster, and the source of seed electrons for radio relics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shimwell, Timothy W.; Markevitch, Maxim; Brown, Shea; Feretti, Luigina; Gaensler, B. M.; Johnston-Hollitt, M.; Lage, Craig; Srinivasan, Raghav

    2015-05-01

    With Australia Telescope Compact Array observations, we detect a highly elongated Mpc-scale diffuse radio source on the eastern periphery of the Bullet cluster 1E 0657-55.8, which we argue has the positional, spectral and polarimetric characteristics of a radio relic. This powerful relic (2.3 ± 0.1 × 1025 W Hz-1) consists of a bright northern bulb and a faint linear tail. The bulb emits 94 per cent of the observed radio flux and has the highest surface brightness of any known relic. Exactly coincident with the linear tail, we find a sharp X-ray surface brightness edge in the deep Chandra image of the cluster - a signature of a shock front in the hot intracluster medium (ICM), located on the opposite side of the cluster to the famous bow shock. This new example of an X-ray shock coincident with a relic further supports the hypothesis that shocks in the outer regions of clusters can form relics via diffusive shock (re-)acceleration. Intriguingly, our new relic suggests that seed electrons for reacceleration are coming from a local remnant of a radio galaxy, which we are lucky to catch before its complete disruption. If this scenario, in which a relic forms when a shock crosses a well-defined region of the ICM polluted with aged relativistic plasma - as opposed to the usual assumption that seeds are uniformly mixed in the ICM - is also the case for other relics, this may explain a number of peculiar properties of peripheral relics.

  9. NuSTAR observations of the bullet cluster: constraints on inverse compton emission

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wik, Daniel R.; Hornstrup, Allan; Molendi, S.

    2014-01-01

    and have degree-scale fields of view, their backgrounds are both high and difficult to characterize. The associated uncertainties result in lower sensitivity to IC emission and a greater chance of false detection. In this work, we present 266 ks NuSTAR observations of the Bullet cluster, which is detected......-but not perfectly-described as an isothermal plasma with kT = 14.2 ± 0.2 keV. To slightly improve the fit, a second temperature component is added, which appears to account for lower temperature emission from the cool core, pushing the primary component to kT ~ 15.3 keV. We see no convincing need to invoke an IC...

  10. Galaxy Clusters in the Swift/BAT era II: 10 more Clusters detected above 15 keV

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ajello, M.; /SLAC /KIPAC, Menlo Park; Rebusco, P.; /KIPAC, Menlo Park; Cappelluti, N.; /Garching, Max Planck Inst., MPE /Maryland U., Baltimore County; Reimer, O.; /SLAC /Palermo Observ.; Boehringer, H.; /Garching, Max Planck Inst., MPE; La Parola, V.; Cusumano, G.; /Palermo Observ.

    2010-10-27

    We report on the discovery of 10 additional galaxy clusters detected in the ongoing Swift/BAT all-sky survey. Among the newly BAT-discovered clusters there are: Bullet, Abell 85, Norma, and PKS 0745-19. Norma is the only cluster, among those presented here, which is resolved by BAT. For all the clusters we perform a detailed spectral analysis using XMM-Newton and Swift/BAT data to investigate the presence of a hard (non-thermal) X-ray excess. We find that in most cases the clusters emission in the 0.3-200 keV band can be explained by a multi-temperature thermal model confirming our previous results. For two clusters (Bullet and Abell 3667) we find evidence for the presence of a hard X-ray excess. In the case of the Bullet cluster, our analysis confirms the presence of a non-thermal, power-law like, component with a 20-100 keV flux of 3.4 x 10{sup -12} erg cm{sup -2} s{sup -1} as detected in previous studies. For Abell 3667 the excess emission can be successfully modeled as a hot component (kT = {approx}13 keV). We thus conclude that the hard X-ray emission from galaxy clusters (except the Bullet) has most likely thermal origin.

  11. GALAXY CLUSTERS IN THE SWIFT/BAT ERA. II. 10 MORE CLUSTERS DETECTED ABOVE 15 keV

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ajello, M.; Reimer, O.; Rebusco, P.; Cappelluti, N.; Boehringer, H.; La Parola, V.; Cusumano, G.

    2010-01-01

    We report on the discovery of 10 additional galaxy clusters detected in the ongoing Swift/Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) all-sky survey. Among the newly BAT-discovered clusters there are Bullet, A85, Norma, and PKS 0745-19. Norma is the only cluster, among those presented here, which is resolved by BAT. For all the clusters, we perform a detailed spectral analysis using XMM-Newton and Swift/BAT data to investigate the presence of a hard (non-thermal) X-ray excess. We find that in most cases the clusters' emission in the 0.3-200 keV band can be explained by a multi-temperature thermal model confirming our previous results. For two clusters (Bullet and A3667), we find evidence for the presence of a hard X-ray excess. In the case of the Bullet cluster, our analysis confirms the presence of a non-thermal, power-law-like, component with a 20-100 keV flux of 3.4 x 10 -12 erg cm -2 s -1 as detected in previous studies. For A3667, the excess emission can be successfully modeled as a hot component (kT ∼ 13 keV). We thus conclude that the hard X-ray emission from galaxy clusters (except the Bullet) has most likely a thermal origin.

  12. Optical bullets and "rockets" in nonlinear dissipative systems and their transformations and interactions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soto-Crespo, J M; Grelu, Philippe; Akhmediev, Nail

    2006-05-01

    We demonstrate the existence of stable optical light bullets in nonlinear dissipative media for both cases of normal and anomalous chromatic dispersion. The prediction is based on direct numerical simulations of the (3+1)-dimensional complex cubic-quintic Ginzburg-Landau equation. We do not impose conditions of spherical or cylindrical symmetry. Regions of existence of stable bullets are determined in the parameter space. Beyond the domain of parameters where stable bullets are found, unstable bullets can be transformed into "rockets" i.e. bullets elongated in the temporal domain. A few examples of the interaction between two optical bullets are considered using spatial and temporal interaction planes.

  13. SPECTROSCOPIC CONFIRMATION OF A z = 6.740 GALAXY BEHIND THE BULLET CLUSTER

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bradac, Marusa; Hall, Nicholas [Department of Physics, University of California, Davis, CA 95616 (United States); Vanzella, Eros [INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Trieste, via G.B. Tiepolo 11, 34131 Trieste (Italy); Treu, Tommaso [Department of Physics, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106 (United States); Fontana, Adriano [INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, via Frascati 33, 00040 Monteporzio (Italy); Gonzalez, Anthony H. [Department of Astronomy, University of Florida, 211 Bryant Space Science Center, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States); Clowe, Douglas [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Ohio University, Clippinger Labs 251B, Athens, OH 45701 (United States); Zaritsky, Dennis; Clement, Benjamin [Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, 933 N Cherry Ave., Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Stiavelli, Massimo, E-mail: marusa@physics.ucdavis.edu [Space Telescope Science Institute, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States)

    2012-08-10

    We present the first results of our spectroscopic follow-up of 6.5 < z < 10 candidate galaxies behind clusters of galaxies. We report the spectroscopic confirmation of an intrinsically faint Lyman break galaxy (LBG) identified as a z{sub 850LP}-band dropout behind the Bullet Cluster. We detect an emission line at {lambda} = 9412 A at >5{sigma} significance using a 16 hr long exposure with FORS2 VLT. Based on the absence of flux in bluer broadband filters, the blue color of the source, and the absence of additional lines, we identify the line as Ly{alpha} at z = 6.740 {+-} 0.003. The integrated line flux is f = (0.7 {+-} 0.1 {+-} 0.3) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -17} erg{sup -1} s{sup -1} cm{sup -2} (the uncertainties are due to random and flux calibration errors, respectively) making it the faintest Ly{alpha} flux detected at these redshifts. Given the magnification of {mu} = 3.0 {+-} 0.2 the intrinsic (corrected for lensing) flux is f {sup int} = (0.23 {+-} 0.03 {+-} 0.10 {+-} 0.02) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -17} erg{sup -1} s{sup -1} cm{sup -2} (additional uncertainty due to magnification), which is {approx}2-3 times fainter than other such measurements in z {approx} 7 galaxies. The intrinsic H{sub 160W}-band magnitude of the object is m{sup int}{sub H{sub 1{sub 6{sub 0{sub W}}}}}=27.57{+-}0.17, corresponding to 0.5 L* for LBGs at these redshifts. The galaxy is one of the two sub-L* LBG galaxies spectroscopically confirmed at these high redshifts (the other is also a lensed z = 7.045 galaxy), making it a valuable probe for the neutral hydrogen fraction in the early universe.

  14. ROTATING BULLETS FROM A VARIABLE PROTOSTAR

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chen, Xuepeng [Purple Mountain Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2 West Beijing Road, Nanjing 210008 (China); Arce, Héctor G. [Department of Astronomy, Yale University, Box 208101, New Haven, CT 06520-8101 (United States); Zhang, Qizhou [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Launhardt, Ralf; Henning, Thomas, E-mail: xpchen@pmo.ac.cn [Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Königstuhl 17, D-69117 Heidelberg (Germany)

    2016-06-20

    We present Submillimeter Array (SMA) CO (2–1) observations toward the protostellar jet driven by SVS 13 A, a variable protostar in the NGC 1333 star-forming region. The SMA CO (2–1) images show an extremely high-velocity jet composed of a series of molecular “bullets.” Based on the SMA CO observations, we discover clear and large systematic velocity gradients, perpendicular to the jet axis, in the blueshifted and redshifted bullets. After discussing several alternative interpretations, such as twin-jets, jet precession, warped disk, and internal helical shock, we suggest that the systematic velocity gradients observed in the bullets result from the rotation of the SVS 13 A jet. From the SMA CO images, the measured rotation velocities are 11.7–13.7 km s{sup −1} for the blueshifted bullet and 4.7 ± 0.5 km s{sup −1} for the redshifted bullet. The estimated specific angular momenta of the two bullets are comparable to those of dense cores, about 10 times larger than those of protostellar envelopes, and about 20 times larger than those of circumstellar disks. If the velocity gradients are due to the rotation of the SVS 13 A jet, the significant amount of specific angular momenta of the bullets indicates that the rotation of jets/outflows is a key mechanism to resolve the so-called “angular momentum problem” in the field of star formation. The kinematics of the bullets suggests that the jet launching footprint on the disk has a radius of ∼7.2–7.7 au, which appears to support the extended disk-wind model. We note that further observations are needed to comprehensively understand the kinematics of the SVS 13 A jet, in order to confirm the rotation nature of the bullets.

  15. Dissipative light-bullets in the filamentation of femtosecond pulses

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Porras, M.A.; Gonzalo, I.

    2010-01-01

    Complete text of publication follows. With the growing interest in filamentation in solid and liquid media, the regime of filamentation with anomalous dispersion is receiving more attention. In this work we show that basics aspects of the filament dynamics in this regime can be explained in terms of a novel type of light-bullet, which is not of solitary or of conical types, but a wave-packet that maximizes the energy dissipation into the medium while remaining localized and stationary in propagation. We first show that a nonlinear optical medium at a given carrier wave length at which dispersion is anomalous, supports 'dissipative' light-bullets, i.e., waves localized in space and time and that propagate without change as a result of a balance between nonlinear compression and nonlinear absorption. Among them, the particular dissipative light-bullet with the highest possible dissipation is unique in a given medium, in the sense that all its properties are fixed by the properties of the medium at the carrier wave length. In this light-bullet, self-focusing continuously transports energy towards the pulse center by an amount that just compensates for the nonlinear losses. Figure 1(a) shows the radial profiles of the dissipative light-bullets that maximizes energy dissipation for several orders of multi-photon absorption responsible for the nonlinear losses. We have also found that this dissipative light-bullet tends to be spontaneously formed in the filamentary dynamics in media with anomalous dispersion. Figure 1(b) shows the peak intensity, the total energy and losses of a pulse that undergoes self-focusing and filamentation in an ideal medium with only Kerr nonlinearity and multi-photon absorption. This simple model reproduces the particularly long filament 'segments' and the 'burst' observed in experiments and in more accurate simulations. The peak intensity in the filament is identical to that of the dissipative light-bullet with maximum dissipation, and the

  16. Acoustic methods for measuring bullet velocity

    OpenAIRE

    Courtney, Michael

    2008-01-01

    This article describes two acoustic methods to measure bullet velocity with an accuracy of 1% or better. In one method, a microphone is placed within 0.1 m of the gun muzzle and a bullet is fired at a steel target 45 m away. The bullet's flight time is the recorded time between the muzzle blast and sound of hitting the target minus the time for the sound to return from the target to the microphone. In the other method, the microphone is placed equidistant from both the gun muzzle and the stee...

  17. A Molecular-line Study of the Interstellar Bullet Engine IRAS05506+2414

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sahai, Raghvendra; Lee, Chin-Fei; Sánchez Contreras, Carmen; Patel, Nimesh; Morris, Mark R.; Claussen, Mark

    2017-12-01

    We present interferometric and single-dish molecular line observations of the interstellar bullet-outflow source IRAS 05506+2414, whose wide-angle bullet spray is similar to the Orion BN/KL explosive outflow and likely arises from an entirely different mechanism than the classical accretion-disk-driven bipolar flows in young stellar objects. The bullet-outflow source is associated with a large pseudo-disk and three molecular outflows—a high-velocity outflow (HVO), a medium-velocity outflow (MVO), and a slow, extended outflow (SEO). The size (mass) of the pseudo-disk is 10,350 au × 6400 au (0.64-0.17 M ⊙) from a model-fit assuming infall and rotation, we derive a central stellar mass of 8-19 M ⊙. The HVO (MVO) has an angular size ˜5180 (˜3330) au and a projected outflow velocity of ˜140 km s-1 (˜30 km s-1). The SEO size (outflow speed) is ˜0.9 pc (˜6 km s-1). The HVO’s axis is aligned with (orthogonal to) that of the SEO (pseudo-disk). The velocity structure of the MVO is unresolved. The scalar momenta in the HVO and SEO are very similar, suggesting that the SEO has resulted from the HVO interacting with ambient-cloud material. The bullet spray shares a common axis with the pseudo-disk and has an age comparable to that of MVO (few hundred years), suggesting that these three structures are intimately linked. We discuss several models for the outflows in IRAS 05506+2414 (including dynamical decay of a stellar cluster, chance encounter of a runaway star with a dense cloud, and close passage of two protostars), and conclude that second-epoch imaging to derive proper motions of the bullets and nearby stars can help to discriminate between them.

  18. Plasma bullet current measurements in a free-stream helium capillary jet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oh, Jun-Seok; Walsh, James L.; Bradley, James W.

    2012-06-01

    A commercial current monitor has been used to measure the current associated with plasma bullets created in both the positive and negative half cycles of the sinusoidal driving voltage sustaining a plasma jet. The maximum values of the positive bullet current are typically ˜750 µA and persist for 10 µs, while the peaks in the negative current of several hundred μA are broad, persisting for about 40 µs. From the time delay of the current peaks with increasing distance from the jet nozzle, an average bullet propagation speed has been measured; the positive and negative bullets travel at 17.5 km s-1 and 3.9 km s-1 respectively. The net space charge associated with the bullet(s) has also been calculated; the positive and negative bullets contain a similar net charge of the order of 10-9 C measured at all monitor positions, with estimated charged particle densities nb of ˜1010-1011 cm-3 in the bullet.

  19. Analysis of Anti-Bullet Resistance of Armored Steels of Foreign Manufacture

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. N. Zuzov

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper studies penetrating armour plates from the steel alloys such as Armox 560T, Domex protect 500, Weldox 700 E, Hardox 400, and Armstal 500, which are used for armour protection. In all tests for five different thick (6 mm, 8 mm, 10 mm, 6 + 6 mm, and 8 + 8mm plates was used one of the most common bullets, i.e. a 7.62 mm "APM2" (hard steel core bullet with an impact velocity of 830 m / s and 920 m / s. The article presents the developed rational finite element models of plates and bullets, which allow us to obtain results with acceptable accuracy and minimum time of solution using the LS-DYNA solver. Predicts the rational thickness values and the steel properties to ensure protection according to the European standard EN1063 ("BR7". Also conducts analysis of influence of the friction coefficient on the results of numerical simulation.The main results of calculations include the residual velocity and kinetic energy of the bullet after penetrating and the pattern of the plate fracture mechanism (for each plate type and thickness. As a result of the studies, it was found that the monolayer 6 mm, 8 mm and 10 mm thick plates from all the investigated steel alloys do not provide a protection level of "BR7" (with an initial bullet velocity of 830 m / s and, on the other hand, the two-layer plates from the alloys Armox 560T, Domex protect 500, and Armstal 500 with a total thickness of 12 mm provide such level of protection. It was also revealed that the influence of the coefficient of friction on the resistance to the bullet penetration is very small, so friction can be neglected.At an initial velocity of 920 m / s a bullet penetrated two-layer 6x2 mm thick plates from all the steel alloys under consideration, while with a thickness of 8x2 mm the bullet could not penetrate (except the Weldox 700E alloy plate.

  20. EDITORIAL: Plasma jets and plasma bullets Plasma jets and plasma bullets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kong, M. G.; Ganguly, B. N.; Hicks, R. F.

    2012-06-01

    Plasma plumes, or plasma jets, belong to a large family of gas discharges whereby the discharge plasma is extended beyond the plasma generation region into the surrounding ambience, either by a field (e.g. electromagnetic, convective gas flow, or shock wave) or a gradient of a directionless physical quantity (e.g. particle density, pressure, or temperature). This physical extension of a plasma plume gives rise to a strong interaction with its surrounding environment, and the interaction alters the properties of both the plasma and the environment, often in a nonlinear and dynamic fashion. The plasma is therefore not confined by defined physical walls, thus extending opportunities for material treatment applications as well as bringing in new challenges in science and technology associated with complex open-boundary problems. Some of the most common examples may be found in dense plasmas with very high dissipation of externally supplied energy (e.g. in electrical, optical or thermal forms) and often in or close to thermal equilibrium. For these dense plasmas, their characteristics are determined predominantly by strong physical forces of different fields, such as electrical, magnetic, thermal, shock wave, and their nonlinear interactions [1]. Common to these dense plasma plumes are significant macroscopic plasma movement and considerable decomposition of solid materials (e.g. vaporization). Their applications are numerous and include detection of elemental traces, synthesis of high-temperature materials and welding, laser--plasma interactions, and relativistic jets in particle accelerators and in space [2]-[4]. Scientific challenges in the understanding of plasma jets are exciting and multidisciplinary, involving interweaving transitions of all four states of matter, and their technological applications are wide-ranging and growing rapidly. Using the Web of Science database, a search for journal papers on non-fusion plasma jets reveals that a long initial phase up

  1. Plasma bullet current measurements in a free-stream helium capillary jet

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oh, Jun-Seok; Walsh, James L; Bradley, James W

    2012-01-01

    A commercial current monitor has been used to measure the current associated with plasma bullets created in both the positive and negative half cycles of the sinusoidal driving voltage sustaining a plasma jet. The maximum values of the positive bullet current are typically ∼750 µA and persist for 10 µs, while the peaks in the negative current of several hundred μA are broad, persisting for about 40 µs. From the time delay of the current peaks with increasing distance from the jet nozzle, an average bullet propagation speed has been measured; the positive and negative bullets travel at 17.5 km s −1 and 3.9 km s −1 respectively. The net space charge associated with the bullet(s) has also been calculated; the positive and negative bullets contain a similar net charge of the order of 10 −9 C measured at all monitor positions, with estimated charged particle densities n b of ∼10 10 –10 11 cm −3 in the bullet. (special)

  2. Spectroscopic Confirmation of a z = 6.740 Galaxy behind the Bullet Cluster

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bradač, Maruša; Vanzella, Eros; Hall, Nicholas; Treu, Tommaso; Fontana, Adriano; Gonzalez, Anthony H.; Clowe, Douglas; Zaritsky, Dennis; Stiavelli, Massimo; Clément, Benjamin

    2012-08-01

    We present the first results of our spectroscopic follow-up of 6.5 dropout behind the Bullet Cluster. We detect an emission line at λ = 9412 Å at >5σ significance using a 16 hr long exposure with FORS2 VLT. Based on the absence of flux in bluer broadband filters, the blue color of the source, and the absence of additional lines, we identify the line as Lyα at z = 6.740 ± 0.003. The integrated line flux is f = (0.7 ± 0.1 ± 0.3) × 10-17 erg-1 s-1 cm-2 (the uncertainties are due to random and flux calibration errors, respectively) making it the faintest Lyα flux detected at these redshifts. Given the magnification of μ = 3.0 ± 0.2 the intrinsic (corrected for lensing) flux is f int = (0.23 ± 0.03 ± 0.10 ± 0.02) × 10-17 erg-1 s-1 cm-2 (additional uncertainty due to magnification), which is ~2-3 times fainter than other such measurements in z ~ 7 galaxies. The intrinsic H 160W-band magnitude of the object is m^int_{H_160W}=27.57+/- 0.17, corresponding to 0.5 L* for LBGs at these redshifts. The galaxy is one of the two sub-L* LBG galaxies spectroscopically confirmed at these high redshifts (the other is also a lensed z = 7.045 galaxy), making it a valuable probe for the neutral hydrogen fraction in the early universe. Observations were carried out using the Very Large Telescope at the ESO Paranal Observatory under Program ID 088.A-0542. Also based on observations made with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, obtained at the Space Telescope Science Institute, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555 and NNX08AD79G. These observations are associated with programs GO10200, GO10863, and GO11099.

  3. Aerial firing and stray bullet injuries: a rising tide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ali, Syed Asad; Tahir, Syed Mohammad; Makhdoom, Asadullah; Shaikh, Abdul Razaque; Siddique, Akmal Jamal

    2015-04-01

    Aerial firing is shooting, using fire arm, into the air usually during a celebration. This observational study aimed to quantify magnitude and impact of stray bullet injuries by aerial firing at surgical emergencies of the Liaquat University Hospital (a university hospital), Hyderabad, Sindh, Pakistan from January 2009 to December 2010 (2 years). During the study period, 144 firearm injuries due to stray bullet reported to the A and E departments of the university hospital. All patients referred to surgical unit providing emergency cover on that day irrespective of the severity of the injury for medico-legal reasons. For this study, the cases were divided into those having trivial injury and do not require any active surgical intervention and those having serious injury mandating surgical intervention. One hundred and two cases of stray bullet injury sustained trivial injury and followed as outpatients after an overnight period of indoor hospitalization; however, 42 patients with stray bullet injuries requiring surgical intervention were hospitalized. The most common events leading to aerial firing and stray bullet injuries were marriage ceremonies, followed by a political rallies and New Year celebrations. Stray bullet injury also reported after aerial firing on cricket/hockey team victories, Pakistan Independence Day (14th August), cultural day in Sindh and Basant (Kite) festival in Punjab. The most frequent sites with serious stray bullet injury were chest (15), head and neck (10), abdomen (9) and limbs (8), respectively. Surgical interventions performed included chest intubation, exploration of wound tract to retrieve bullet if lodged superficially and was palpable, laparotomy to managed intra-abdominal injury, reduction of fracture site followed by reconstruction, flap reconstruction and graft for nonhealing wound. The mean duration of hospital stay was 19 days. No mortality was observed in this series of patients. We conclude that the prevalence of aerial

  4. Isotopic analysis of bullet lead samples

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sankar Das, M.; Venkatasubramanian, V.S.; Sreenivas, K.

    1976-01-01

    The possibility of using the isotopic composition of lead for the identification of bullet lead is investigated. Lead from several spent bullets were converted to lead sulphide and analysed for the isotopic abundances using an MS-7 mass spectrometer. The abundances are measured relative to that for Pb 204 was too small to permit differentiation, while the range of variation of Pb 206 and Pb 207 and the better precision in their analyses permitted differentiating samples from one another. The correlation among the samples examined has been pointed out. The method is complementary to characterisation of bullet leads by the trace element composition. The possibility of using isotopically enriched lead for tagging bullet lead is pointed out. (author)

  5. Interaction of Interstellar Shocks with Dense Obstacles: Formation of ``Bullets''

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gvaramadze, V. V.

    The so-called cumulative effect take place in converging conical shock waves arising behind dense obstacles overtaken by incident interstellar shock. A significant part of energy of converging flow of matter swept-up by a radiative conical shock can be transferred to a dense jet-like ejection (``bullet'') directed along the cone axis. Possible applications of this effect for star-forming regions (e.g., OMC-1) and supernova remnants (e.g., Vela SNR) are discussed.

  6. Are lead-free hunting rifle bullets as effective at killing wildlife as conventional lead bullets? A comparison based on wound size and morphology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Trinogga, Anna, E-mail: anna_trinogga@gmx.de; Fritsch, Guido; Hofer, Heribert; Krone, Oliver

    2013-01-15

    Fragmentation of the lead core of conventional wildlife hunting rifle bullets causes contamination of the target with lead. The community of scavenger species which feed on carcasses or viscera discarded by hunters are regularly exposed to these lead fragments and may die by acute or chronic lead intoxication, as demonstrated for numerous species such as white-tailed eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla) where it is among the most important sources of mortality. Not only does hunting with conventional ammunition deposit lead in considerable quantities in the environment, it also significantly delays or threatens the recovery of endangered raptor populations. Although lead-free bullets might be considered a suitable alternative that addresses the source of these problems, serious reservations have been expressed as to their ability to quickly and effectively kill a hunted animal. To assess the suitability of lead-free projectiles for hunting practice, the wounding potential of conventional bullets was compared with lead-free bullets under real life hunting conditions. Wound dimensions were regarded as good markers of the projectiles' killing potential. Wound channels in 34 killed wild ungulates were evaluated using computed tomography and post-mortem macroscopical examination. Wound diameters caused by conventional bullets did not differ significantly to those created by lead-free bullets. Similarly, the size of the maximum cross-sectional area of the wound was similar for both bullet types. Injury patterns suggested that all animals died by exsanguination. This study demonstrates that lead-free bullets are equal to conventional hunting bullets in terms of killing effectiveness and thus equally meet the welfare requirements of killing wildlife as painlessly as possible. The widespread introduction and use of lead-free bullets should be encouraged as it prevents environmental contamination with a seriously toxic pollutant and contributes to the conservation of a wide

  7. Are lead-free hunting rifle bullets as effective at killing wildlife as conventional lead bullets? A comparison based on wound size and morphology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trinogga, Anna; Fritsch, Guido; Hofer, Heribert; Krone, Oliver

    2013-01-01

    Fragmentation of the lead core of conventional wildlife hunting rifle bullets causes contamination of the target with lead. The community of scavenger species which feed on carcasses or viscera discarded by hunters are regularly exposed to these lead fragments and may die by acute or chronic lead intoxication, as demonstrated for numerous species such as white-tailed eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla) where it is among the most important sources of mortality. Not only does hunting with conventional ammunition deposit lead in considerable quantities in the environment, it also significantly delays or threatens the recovery of endangered raptor populations. Although lead-free bullets might be considered a suitable alternative that addresses the source of these problems, serious reservations have been expressed as to their ability to quickly and effectively kill a hunted animal. To assess the suitability of lead-free projectiles for hunting practice, the wounding potential of conventional bullets was compared with lead-free bullets under real life hunting conditions. Wound dimensions were regarded as good markers of the projectiles' killing potential. Wound channels in 34 killed wild ungulates were evaluated using computed tomography and post-mortem macroscopical examination. Wound diameters caused by conventional bullets did not differ significantly to those created by lead-free bullets. Similarly, the size of the maximum cross-sectional area of the wound was similar for both bullet types. Injury patterns suggested that all animals died by exsanguination. This study demonstrates that lead-free bullets are equal to conventional hunting bullets in terms of killing effectiveness and thus equally meet the welfare requirements of killing wildlife as painlessly as possible. The widespread introduction and use of lead-free bullets should be encouraged as it prevents environmental contamination with a seriously toxic pollutant and contributes to the conservation of a wide variety

  8. A multitechnique approach for bullet characterization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sreenivas, K.; Venkatasubramanian, V.S.; Sankar Das, M.

    1978-01-01

    The possibility of using lead isotopic composition of bullet lead in conjunction with chemical composition (with respect to minor and trace elements) for the characterisation of bullet lead samples is demonstrated. Lead isotope analysis was done by using a mass spectrometer M.S. 702, while trace analyses were carried out by a combination of neutron activation analysis and atomic absorption spectrometry. It is pointed out that this multi-technique approach to the problem of bullet characterization can be gainfully employed in forensic investigations. (author)

  9. Craniomaxillofacial falling bullet injuries and management.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shuker, Sabri T; Sadda, Raid

    2010-07-01

    The purpose of this study was to bring attention to craniocerebral maxillofacial perforating/penetrating injuries due to AK-47 Kalashnikov falling bullets (FBs); these dangerous injuries to both civilians and soldiers are rare. A review of the literature shows no reports on AK-47 FBs leading to double craniocerebral perforation and settling into the maxillofacial region. The number of victims, the AK-47's availability, the associated morbidity and mortality rates, and the rarity of cases prompted this article. The treatment of injuries to the craniocerebral facial clinical profile due to FBs is challenging, and an understanding of the neurosurgical and maxillofacial management of these low-velocity FB injuries is required. We treated 11 cases due to AK-47 rifle FBs and 1 due to anti-aircraft Dashka 12.7-mm FBs. Craniocerebral facial injuries were treated and lodged bullets removed from different challenging locations in the base of the skull, without increasing morbidity and with avoidance of unnecessary surgical trauma to the affected area by the bullets. The required identification of such injuries can be difficult, and the removal of the lodged bullet to prevent secondary complications and reduce the chance of secondary infection can be graver than in other parts of the body. AK-47 FBs are a major public health concern internationally and require serious attention in terms of protection and management for civilians and soldiers in uniform. Copyright 2010 American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Pure air-plasma bullets propagating inside microcapillaries and in ambient air

    KAUST Repository

    Lacoste, Deanna; Bourdon, Anne; Kuribara, Koichi; Urabe, Keiichiro; Stauss, Sven; Terashima, Kazuo

    2014-01-01

    This paper reports on the characterization of air-plasma bullets in microcapillary tubes and in ambient air, obtained without the use of inert or noble gases. The bullets were produced by nanosecond repetitively pulsed discharges, applied in a dielectric barrier discharge configuration. The anode was a tungsten wire with a diameter of 50 μm, centered in the microcapillary, while the cathode was a silver ring, fixed on the outer surface of the fused silica tube. The effects of the applied voltage and the inner diameter of the microcapillary tube on the plasma behavior were investigated. Inside the tubes, while the topology of the bullets seems to be strongly dependent on the diameter, their velocity is only a function of the amplitude of the applied voltage. In ambient air, the propagation of air bullets with a velocity of about 1.25 ×105 m s-1 is observed.

  11. Pure air-plasma bullets propagating inside microcapillaries and in ambient air

    KAUST Repository

    Lacoste, Deanna

    2014-11-04

    This paper reports on the characterization of air-plasma bullets in microcapillary tubes and in ambient air, obtained without the use of inert or noble gases. The bullets were produced by nanosecond repetitively pulsed discharges, applied in a dielectric barrier discharge configuration. The anode was a tungsten wire with a diameter of 50 μm, centered in the microcapillary, while the cathode was a silver ring, fixed on the outer surface of the fused silica tube. The effects of the applied voltage and the inner diameter of the microcapillary tube on the plasma behavior were investigated. Inside the tubes, while the topology of the bullets seems to be strongly dependent on the diameter, their velocity is only a function of the amplitude of the applied voltage. In ambient air, the propagation of air bullets with a velocity of about 1.25 ×105 m s-1 is observed.

  12. Formation of hydroxyl radical (sm-bulletOH) in illuminated surface waters contaminated with acidic mine drainage

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Allen, J.M.; Lucas, S.; Allen, S.K.

    1996-01-01

    Formation rates and steady-state concentrations of hydroxyl radical ( sm-bullet OH) in illuminated surface water samples collected in west-central Indiana that receive acidic mine drainage runoff are reported. Formation rates for sm-bullet OH in samples were measured by the addition of 1 x 10 -3 M benzene prior to illuminate in order to effectively scavenge all of the sm-bullet OH formed, thereby yielding phenol. The sm-bullet OH formation rates were calculated from the measured phenol formation rates. Steady-state concentrations of sm-bullet OH were measured by the addition of 5 x 10 -7 M nitrobenzene to the samples prior to illumination. Estimated sunlight sm-bullet OH formation rates range from 16 microM h -1 to 265 microM h -1 . Estimated sunlight steady-state sm-bullet OH concentrations range from 6.7 x 10 -15 to 4.0 x 10 -12 M. Both the formation rates and steady-state concentrations for sm-bullet OH are thus two to three orders of magnitude higher than values reported in the literature for other sunlit surface water samples. Due to the very high rates of formation and steady-state concentrations for sm-bullet OH in these samples, the authors conclude that aqueous-phase reactions involving sm-bullet OH represent a significant pathway by which organic pollutants in illuminated surface waters receiving acidic mine drainage runoff may be consumed

  13. Detection of a Double Relic in the Torpedo Cluster: SPT-CL J0245-5302

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Q.; Johnston-Hollitt, M.; Duchesne, S. W.; Li, W. T.

    2018-06-01

    The Torpedo cluster, SPT-CL J0245-5302 (S0295) is a massive, merging cluster at a redshift of z = 0.300, which exhibits a strikingly similar morphology to the Bullet cluster 1E 0657-55.8 (z = 0.296), including a classic bow shock in the cluster's intra-cluster medium revealed by Chandra X-ray observations. We present Australia Telescope Compact Array data centred at 2.1 GHz and Murchison Widefield Array data at frequencies between 72 MHz and 231 MHz which we use to study the properties of the cluster. We characterise a number of discrete and diffuse radio sources in the cluster, including the detection of two previously unknown radio relics on the cluster periphery. The average spectral index of the diffuse emission between 70 MHz and 3.1 GHz is α =-1.63_{-0.10}^{+0.10} and a radio-derived Mach number for the shock in the west of the cluster is calculated as M = 2.04. The Torpedo cluster is thus a double relic system at moderate redshift.

  14. Management of migrating intracranial bullets: lessons learned from surviving an AK-47 bullet through the lateral brainstem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rammo, Richard A; DeFazio, Michael V; Bullock, M Ross

    2012-01-01

    Survival after a gunshot wound (GSW) to the head is becoming more common, with an accompanying increase in spontaneous migration of these intracranial bullet fragments. This phenomenon is well described in current literature and is a potentially life-threatening delayed complication of GSW to the head. We present the case of a 17-year-old boy who survived a penetrating GSW to the cranium and cerebellum after an accident involving an AK (Automatic Kalashnikov)-47 (7.62 mm). Following initial attempts to remove the bullet and associated hematoma from the cerebellar hemisphere, intraoperative fluoroscopy revealed that the bullet had migrated to lie within the right middle cerebellar peduncle with the development of intraoperative cardiac arrhythmia. The bullet could not be retrieved without risk of damage to the superior and inferior cerebellar arteries. The patient then developed bacterial meningitis, and further imaging revealed the bullet had again migrated under the cerebellar cortex to an accessible location. The infection was treated with aggressive antibiotic therapy and the bullet was removed from the posterior fossa, thus preventing recurrence of infection and further migration. The patient regained full motor, speech, and proprioceptive function within months after injury. The potential for spontaneous migration exists with any penetrating brain injury involving a retained foreign body. When a retained intracranial foreign body is unable to be safely extracted during initial debridement, close clinical evaluation is essential and plain-film or computed tomographic imaging should be considered in order to enhance the early detection of delayed-onset life-threatening deterioration, such as meningitis and occlusion of cerebrospinal fluid drainage, because of spontaneous migration. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. Fractures Due to Gunshot Wounds: Do Retained Bullet Fragments Affect Union?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riehl, John T; Connolly, Keith; Haidukewych, George; Koval, Ken

    2015-01-01

    Many types of projectiles, including modern hollow point bullets, fragment into smaller pieces upon impact, particularly when striking bone. This study was performed to examine the effect on time to union with retained bullet material near a fracture site in cases of gunshot injury. All gunshot injuries operatively treated with internal fixation at a Level 1 Trauma Center between March 2008 and August 2011 were retrospectively reviewed. Retained bullet load near the fracture site was calculated based on percentage of material retained compared to the cortical diameter of the involved bone. Analyses were performed to assess the effect of the lead-cortical ratio and amount of comminution on time to fracture union. Thirty-two patients (34 fractures) met the inclusion criteria, with an equal number of comminuted (17) and non-comminuted fractures (17). Seventeen of 34 fractures (50%) united within 4 months, 16/34 (47%) developed a delayed union, and 1/34 (3%) developed a nonunion requiring revision surgery. Sixteen of 17 fractures (94%) that united by 4 months had a cumulative amount of bullet fragmentation retained near the fracture site of less than 20% of the cortical diameter. Nine out of 10 fractures (90%) with retained fragments near the fracture site was equal to or exceeding 20% of the cortical diameter had delayed or nonunion. Fracture comminution had no effect on time to union. The quantity of retained bullet material near the fracture site was more predictive of the rate of fracture union than was comminution. Fractures with bullet fragmentation equal to or exceeding 20% of the cortical width demonstrated a significantly higher rate of delayed union/nonunion compared to those fractures with less retained bullet material, which may indicate a local cytotoxic effect from lead on bone healing. These findings may influence decisions on timing of secondary surgeries. Level III.

  16. Experimental studies on the plasma bullet propagation and its inhibition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Karakas, Erdinc; Laroussi, Mounir

    2010-01-01

    Plasma bullets generated by atmospheric pressure low temperature plasma jets have recently been an active research topic due to their unique properties and their enhanced plasma chemistry. In this paper, experimental insights into the plasma bullet lifetime and its velocity are reported. Data obtained from intensified charge-coupled device camera and time-resolved optical emission spectroscopy (OES) elucidated the existence of a weakly ionized channel between the plasma bullet and its source (such as the plasma pencil). Factors responsible for the inhibition of the propagation of the bullet, such as low helium mole fraction, the magnitude of the applied voltage, and the secondary discharge ignition time, are also revealed. A new technique is discussed to accurately measure the plasma bullet velocity, using time-resolved OES. This new technique shows that during its lifetime the plasma bullet goes through launching, propagation, and ending phases. In addition, it is noted that the plasma bullet exhibits an unstable behavior at the early beginning and late ending of the propagation.

  17. Antimony sinks in the weathering crust of bullets from Swiss shooting ranges

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ackermann, Sonia; Giere, Reto; Newville, Matthew; Majzlan, Juraj

    2009-01-01

    Shooting ranges represent sites heavily polluted by Pb, Sb, Cu, Ni, and Zn, which are released during the weathering of bullets. The pristine bullets are made of a Pb-Sb core, Fe mantle, and minor amounts of Cu, Ni, and Zn in an interlayer between the core and mantle. At two selected sampling sites (Losone and Lucerne, both in Switzerland), corroding bullets were collected to determine the sinks of Sb within the weathering crust of the bullets. Bulk Sb concentrations in the crust were found to be as high as 1.3 wt.%. The oxalate-extractable fraction of Fe showed that the amorphous Fe oxides (e.g., ferrihydrite) prevail over goethite and lepidocrocite, which were identified by bulk X-ray diffraction experiments. Crystalline Pb phases are litharge (only found by X-ray diffraction) and cerussite, which result from weathering of the Pb core. No distinct Sb minerals were identified by X-ray diffraction. Investigations with electron microprobe (EMP) showed that Sb is mostly accumulated in those regions in the weathering crust where there is also a high concentration of Fe. In the weathering crust from Losone, such Fe-rich regions with Sb are represented by material that cements or rims silicate mineral grains. The cement was identified as lepidocrocite by micro-Raman analysis. At Lucerne, Sb is found in Fe-oxide aggregates, in sawdust particles where it may be bound to organic matter, or in aggregates enriched in Pb and depleted in Fe. Bulk EXAFS experiments suggested that the Fe oxides are the most important sink for Sb. Our modelling of Sb next-nearest neighbours suggests two types of inner-sphere complexes on the surfaces of Fe oxides. These are edge- and corner-sharing adsorption complexes. Hence, the predominant sink of Sb in the weathering crust of the bullets at the selected shooting ranges is Fe oxides, amorphous or crystalline

  18. Photonic Switching Devices Using Light Bullets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goorjian, Peter M. (Inventor)

    1999-01-01

    A unique ultra-fast, all-optical switching device or switch is made with readily available, relatively inexpensive, highly nonlinear optical materials. which includes highly nonlinear optical glasses, semiconductor crystals and/or multiple quantum well semiconductor materials. At the specified wavelengths. these optical materials have a sufficiently negative group velocity dispersion and high nonlinear index of refraction to support stable light bullets. The light bullets counter-propagate through, and interact within the waveguide to selectively change each others' directions of propagation into predetermined channels. In one embodiment, the switch utilizes a rectangularly planar slab waveguide. and further includes two central channels and a plurality of lateral channels for guiding the light bullets into and out of the waveguide. An advantage of the present all-optical switching device lies in its practical use of light bullets, thus preventing the degeneration of the pulses due to dispersion and diffraction at the front and back of the pulses. Another advantage of the switching device is the relative insensitivity of the collision process to the time difference in which the counter-propagating pulses enter the waveguide. since. contrary to conventional co-propagating spatial solitons, the relative phase of the colliding pulses does not affect the interaction of these pulses. Yet another feature of the present all-optical switching device is the selection of the light pulse parameters which enables the generation of light bullets in nonlinear optical materials. including highly nonlinear optical glasses and semiconductor materials such as semiconductor crystals and/or multiple quantum well semiconductor materials.

  19. A bullet-sired bone cyst

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brogdon, B.G. [University of South Alabama Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Mobile, AL (United States); Cottrell, W.C. [Orthopaedic Associates of West Florida, Clearwater, FL (United States); Nimityongskul, P. [University of South Alabama Medical Center, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Mobile, AL (United States); Takhtani, D. [Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Department of Radiology, Baltimore, MD (United States)

    2006-12-15

    Random gunfire deposited a bullet in the proximal tibial metaphysis of a 9-year- old girl. The wound was not incapacitating and was treated conservatively. Within 17 months, soreness developed in the proximal leg, and radiography revealed a large unicameral cyst within which the bullet freely tumbled. Eventually, fear of impending fracture prompted further radiography, computed tomography, surgical intervention and pathological examination of the cyst wall. We believe this is only the second description in the English-language literature of this rare sequence of events. (orig.)

  20. A bullet-sired bone cyst

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brogdon, B.G.; Cottrell, W.C.; Nimityongskul, P.; Takhtani, D.

    2006-01-01

    Random gunfire deposited a bullet in the proximal tibial metaphysis of a 9-year- old girl. The wound was not incapacitating and was treated conservatively. Within 17 months, soreness developed in the proximal leg, and radiography revealed a large unicameral cyst within which the bullet freely tumbled. Eventually, fear of impending fracture prompted further radiography, computed tomography, surgical intervention and pathological examination of the cyst wall. We believe this is only the second description in the English-language literature of this rare sequence of events. (orig.)

  1. TURBULENT COSMIC-RAY REACCELERATION AT RADIO RELICS AND HALOS IN CLUSTERS OF GALAXIES

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fujita, Yutaka; Takizawa, Motokazu; Yamazaki, Ryo; Akamatsu, Hiroki; Ohno, Hiroshi

    2015-01-01

    Radio relics are synchrotron emission found on the periphery of galaxy clusters. From the position and the morphology, it is often believed that the relics are generated by cosmic-ray (CR) electrons accelerated at shocks through a diffusive shock acceleration (DSA) mechanism. However, some radio relics have harder spectra than the prediction of the standard DSA model. One example is observed in the cluster 1RXS J0603.3+4214, which is often called the “Toothbrush Cluster.” Interestingly, the position of the relic is shifted from that of a possible shock. In this study, we show that these discrepancies in the spectrum and the position can be solved if turbulent (re)acceleration is very effective behind the shock. This means that for some relics turbulent reacceleration may be the main mechanism to produce high-energy electrons, contrary to the common belief that it is the DSA. Moreover, we show that for efficient reacceleration, the effective mean free path of the electrons has to be much smaller than their Coulomb mean free path. We also study the merging cluster 1E 0657−56, or the “Bullet Cluster,” in which a radio relic has not been found at the position of the prominent shock ahead of the bullet. We indicate that a possible relic at the shock is obscured by the observed large radio halo that is generated by strong turbulence behind the shock. We propose a simple explanation of the morphological differences of radio emission among the Toothbrush, the Bullet, and the Sausage (CIZA J2242.8+5301) Clusters

  2. Gunshot Wound in Lumbar Spine with Intradural Location of a Bullet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    G. Bordon

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The presence of a migratory bullet in the spinal canal after a gunshot injury is a rare finding, specially without causing permanent neurologic damage. We present the case of a patient who suffered a gunshot wound with an entry point in the posterior arc of L2-L3 and a migratory bullet detected at the level of L5-S1 in the CT scan. The patient complained about intense headache, dizziness, and variable sensitive impairment in lower legs apparently depending on the patient’s position in bed. We decided to remove the bullet in order to prevent the delayed neurological damage and lead toxicity. We discuss technical details of this surgery.

  3. Progressive Propaganda Critics and the Magic Bullet Myth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sproule, J. Michael

    1989-01-01

    Examines the development and historical inaccuracies of the "magic bullet" interpretation of American propaganda studies, which asserts that propaganda critics between the world wars treated messages as "magic bullets" directly and powerfully infused into passive receivers. Considers why this misconception of the progressive…

  4. [The forensic medical characteristics of the entrance bullet holes created by the shots from pneumatic rifles].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Legin, G A; Bondarchuk, A O; Perebetjuk, A N

    2015-01-01

    The objective of the present study was to compare the injurious action of three types of the bullets for the pneumatic weapons shot from different distances using the Gamo pump air pistol and the BAM B22-1 pneumatic rifle. The following four kinds of the bullets were tested: "the fireball", "Luman cap 0.3", "Luman Field Target 0.68" and "DIABOLO". It was experimentally shown that the injurious action of the bullets fired from the same distance from the pneumatic weapons depends on the type of both the bullet and the weapon, as well as the properties of the target material. Specifically, the action of bullets fired from the piston pneumatic rifle remained stable whereas that of the bullets shot from the gas-balloon air pistol decreased as the gas was exhausted. The studies by the contact-diffusion method have demonstrated that the entrance bullet holes created by the shots from pneumatic weapons are surrounded by dispersed metal particles which makes it possible to estimate the shooting distance. Moreover, the bullets fired from the pneumatic weapons leave the muzzle face imprint on certain target materials.

  5. Brown sequard syndrome following firearm injury with a bullet lodged in the upper cervical canal

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brohi, S.R.; Brohi, Q.R.

    2008-01-01

    A case of stray bullet injury in a child is reported who presented with Brown-Sequard syndrome and CSF leak from the wound at the nape of neck. Patient was assessed by plain radiography and CT scans showing bullet lying in the cervical spinal canal under the C1 and C2 laminae. Laminectomy at C1/C2 level was done and bullet was carefully removed. Patient improved neurologically and CSF discharge stopped. The case report indicated the atypical neurological presentation and possibility of survival in high cervical spinal firearm injury. (author)

  6. The density and velocity of plasma bullets propagating along one dielectric tube

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Longfei Ji

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available This study shows that the propagation of plasma bullets along one dielectric tube is strongly affected by many discharge parameters, such as the waveform of applied voltage (AC or pulsed DC, peak voltage, He flow rate, and the frequency of AC voltage. Analysis indicates that the density and velocity of plasma bullets are mainly determined by the electric field at the front of plasma bullets. These discharge parameters may significantly influence the distribution of plasma potential along the tube, thus control the electric field at the front of plasma bullets and their propagation. An increase in the pulsed DC voltage with its rise time of <40-50 ns can lead to an obvious improvement in the electric field at the front of plasma bullets, resulting in generation of a plasma in the high density gas and a fast propagation of plasma bullets. He flowing through the tube can contribute to the surface diffusion of charged species, and greatly increase the electric field at the front of plasma bullets. During the propagation of plasma bullets, their density is decreased due to the surface recombination of charged species, such as electrons and ions.

  7. Complete endoscopic management of a retained bullet in the bladder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friedman, Ariella A; Trinh, Quoc-Dien; Kaul, Sanjeev; Bhandari, Akshay

    2013-01-01

    A 25-year-old male gunshot victim presented at our institution with gross hematuria following Foley catheter insertion. Computed tomography and cystogram did not show a bladder perforation, but were notable for a left ischial fracture and the presence of a bullet within the bladder. After failed attempts at retrieving the bullet with a resectoscope and loop, as well as a cystoscope and stone crusher, a 26 French nephroscope was inserted transurethrally, and the bullet was successfully engaged and removed using a Perc NCircle (Cook Medical, Bloomington, IN) grasper. The extra-peritoneal injury was managed conservatively with catheter drainage. To our knowledge, this represents the first case of successful transurethral management of a retained intravesical bullet. Such an approach may benefit patients with retained intravesical bullets or other challenging intravesical foreign bodies and may be helpful in select circumstances to spare patients from more extensive surgeries.

  8. A Fortunate Story of an Unusual AK-47 Bullet Trajectory: Always Keep a Smartphone in Your Pocket.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thabouillot, Oscar; Perrier, Pierre; Roche, Nicolas-Charles; Agard, David; Barbier, Olivier; Martin, Guillaume; Viant, Eric; Leclere, Jean-Baptiste

    2016-06-01

    This is a report of a fortunate story of an unusual AK-47 bullet trajectory which took place during the Paris (France) attack of November 13th, 2015. A young man, trying to protect his girlfriend, interfered between her and a shooter. He had been wounded in the posterior compartment of the thigh. The bullet penetrated him and, instead of exiting, rebound against his Smartphone, which was in the front pocket of his pants. Thanks to that, the missile bullet did not injure his girlfriend but ended its trajectory in the fat tissue of his thigh. Thabouillot O , Perrier P , Roche NC , Agard D , Barbier O , Martin G , Viant E , Leclere JB . A fortunate story of an unusual AK-47 bullet trajectory: always keep a Smartphone in your pocket. Prehosp Disaster Med, 2016;31(3):343-345.

  9. Lead isotope ratio analysis of bullet samples by using quadrupole ICP-MS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tamura, Shu-ichi; Hokura, Akiko; Nakai, Izumi; Oishi, Masahiro

    2006-01-01

    The measurement conditions for the precise analysis of the lead stable isotope ratio by using an ICP-MS equipped with a quadrupole mass spectrometer were studied in order to apply the technique to the forensic identification of bullet samples. The values of the relative standard deviation obtained for the ratio of 208 Pb/ 206 Pb, 207 Pb/ 206 Pb and 204 Pb/ 206 Pb were lower than 0.2% after optimization of the analytical conditions, including the optimum lead concentration of the sample solution to be about 70 ppb and an integration time for 1 m/s of 15 s. This method was applied to an analysis of lead in bullets for rifles and handguns; a stable isotope ratio of lead was found to be suitable for the identification of bullets. This study has demonstrated that the lead isotope ratio measured by using a quadrupole ICP-MS was useful for a practical analysis of bullet samples in forensic science. (author)

  10. GALAXY CLUSTER BULK FLOWS AND COLLISION VELOCITIES IN QUMOND

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Katz, Harley; McGaugh, Stacy; Teuben, Peter [Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742 (United States); Angus, G. W., E-mail: hkatz@astro.umd.edu, E-mail: stacy.mcgaugh@case.edu, E-mail: teuben@astro.umd.edu, E-mail: angus.gz@gmail.com [Astrophysics, Cosmology and Gravity Centre, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7700 (South Africa)

    2013-07-20

    We examine the formation of clusters of galaxies in numerical simulations of a QUMOND cosmogony with massive sterile neutrinos. Clusters formed in these exploratory simulations develop higher velocities than those found in {Lambda}CDM simulations. The bulk motions of clusters attain {approx}1000 km s{sup -1} by low redshift, comparable to observations whereas {Lambda}CDM simulated clusters tend to fall short. Similarly, high pairwise velocities are common in cluster-cluster collisions like the Bullet Cluster. There is also a propensity for the most massive clusters to be larger in QUMOND and to appear earlier than in {Lambda}CDM, potentially providing an explanation for ''pink elephants'' like El Gordo. However, it is not obvious that the cluster mass function can be recovered.

  11. GALAXY CLUSTER BULK FLOWS AND COLLISION VELOCITIES IN QUMOND

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Katz, Harley; McGaugh, Stacy; Teuben, Peter; Angus, G. W.

    2013-01-01

    We examine the formation of clusters of galaxies in numerical simulations of a QUMOND cosmogony with massive sterile neutrinos. Clusters formed in these exploratory simulations develop higher velocities than those found in ΛCDM simulations. The bulk motions of clusters attain ∼1000 km s –1 by low redshift, comparable to observations whereas ΛCDM simulated clusters tend to fall short. Similarly, high pairwise velocities are common in cluster-cluster collisions like the Bullet Cluster. There is also a propensity for the most massive clusters to be larger in QUMOND and to appear earlier than in ΛCDM, potentially providing an explanation for ''pink elephants'' like El Gordo. However, it is not obvious that the cluster mass function can be recovered.

  12. BUILDING e-CLUSTERS

    OpenAIRE

    Milan Davidovic

    2013-01-01

    E-clusters are strategic alliance in TIMES technology sector (Telecommunication, Information technology, Multimedia, Entertainment, Security) where products and processes are digitalized. They enable horizontal and vertical integration of small and medium companies and establish new added value e-chains. E-clusters also build supply chains based on cooperation relationship, innovation, organizational knowledge and compliance of intellectual properties. As an innovative approach for economic p...

  13. A Measuring Method About the Bullet Velocity in Electromagnetic Rail Gun

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jianming LIU

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available The operating principle of electromagnetic rail gun by store capacitor was analyzed. A simulation model about the bullet velocity in the electromagnetic rail gun was built. The results of computer simulation experiment showed the relationships between the bullet velocity and the capacitor charging voltage and the pellet mass. By ten coil targets, a new kind of measuring method for the bullet velocity in electromagnetic rail gun was presented. The results of the actual experiment were analyzed. The improving method for measuring bullet velocity was put forward.

  14. Assessment of bullet effectiveness based on a human vulnerability model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Susu; Xu, C; Wen, Y; Li, G; Zhou, J

    2017-12-25

    Penetrating wounds from explosively propelled fragments and bullets are the most common causes of combat injury. There is a requirement to assess the potential effectiveness of bullets penetrating human tissues in order to optimise preventive measures and wound trauma management. An advanced voxel model based on the Chinese Visible Human data was built. A digital human vulnerability model was established in combination with wound reconstruction and vulnerability assessment rules, in which wound penetration profiles were obtained by recreating the penetration of projectiles into ballistic gelatin. An effectiveness evaluation method of bullet penetration using the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) was developed and solved using the Monte Carlo sampling method. The effectiveness of rifle bullets was demonstrated to increase with increasing velocity in the range of 300-700 m/s. When imparting the same energy, the effectiveness of the 5.56 mm bullet was higher than the 7.62 mm bullet in this model. The superimposition of simulant penetration profiles produced from ballistic gelatin simulant has been used to predict wound tracts in damaged tissues. The authors recognise that determining clinical effectiveness based on the AIS scores alone without verification of outcome by review of clinical hospital records means that this technique should be seen more as a manner of comparing the effectiveness of bullets than an injury prediction model. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  15. Probing dark energy models with extreme pairwise velocities of galaxy clusters from the DEUS-FUR simulations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bouillot, Vincent R.; Alimi, Jean-Michel; Corasaniti, Pier-Stefano; Rasera, Yann

    2015-06-01

    Observations of colliding galaxy clusters with high relative velocity probe the tail of the halo pairwise velocity distribution with the potential of providing a powerful test of cosmology. As an example it has been argued that the discovery of the Bullet Cluster challenges standard Λ cold dark matter (ΛCDM) model predictions. Halo catalogues from N-body simulations have been used to estimate the probability of Bullet-like clusters. However, due to simulation volume effects previous studies had to rely on a Gaussian extrapolation of the pairwise velocity distribution to high velocities. Here, we perform a detail analysis using the halo catalogues from the Dark Energy Universe Simulation Full Universe Runs (DEUS-FUR), which enables us to resolve the high-velocity tail of the distribution and study its dependence on the halo mass definition, redshift and cosmology. Building upon these results, we estimate the probability of Bullet-like systems in the framework of Extreme Value Statistics. We show that the tail of extreme pairwise velocities significantly deviates from that of a Gaussian, moreover it carries an imprint of the underlying cosmology. We find the Bullet Cluster probability to be two orders of magnitude larger than previous estimates, thus easing the tension with the ΛCDM model. Finally, the comparison of the inferred probabilities for the different DEUS-FUR cosmologies suggests that observations of extreme interacting clusters can provide constraints on dark energy models complementary to standard cosmological tests.

  16. The destabilizing effect of body armour on military rifle bullets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knudsen, P J; Sørensen, O H

    1997-01-01

    Soft body armour is designed to give protection against fragments and some low velocity bullets but is not designed to stop high velocity rifle bullets. Reports have claimed that soft body armour might disturb the stability of bullets that penetrate it, and that this might increase the size of the lesions. The reason for such an effect might be early yaw of the bullet, so we studied the behaviour of bullets which had passed through soft body armour. A 7.62 x 39 mm AK-47 rifle was fired from a permanent stand using full metal jacketed lead core bullets at a range of 30 m. Soft body armour composed for 14 and 28 layers of aramid fibres (Kevlar) was placed at 90 degrees and 60 degrees to the line of fire. Yaw was measured by the shadowgraph technique and a TERMA Doppler radar. A total of ten shots without body armour, and ten shots with each of the two types of body armour at the two angles were used. The results of the shadowgraph and Doppler radar measurements showed a proportional correlation between the two methods of determining the bullet yaw. The semiquantitative approach of the Doppler radar measurement was in agreement with the more concise measurement using the photographic technique. Velocity loss and loss of spin rate from penetrating 14 or 28 ply Kevlar was negligible. We observed induced instability after penetration of 14 and particularly 28 ply Kevlar, dependence of yaw with respect to the number of layers of Kevlar as well as to the angle of the body armour with respect to the line of fire.

  17. Simulation of impact ballistic of Cu-10wt%Sn frangible bullet using smoothed particle hydrodynamics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hidayat, Mas Irfan P.; Widyastuti, Simaremare, Peniel

    2018-04-01

    Frangible bullet is designed to disintegrate upon impact against a hard target. Understanding the impact response and performance of frangible bullet is therefore of highly interest. In this paper, simulation of impact ballistic of Cu-IOwt%Sn frangible bullet using smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method is presented. The frangible bullet is impacted against a hard, cylindrical stainless steel target. Effect of variability of the frangible bullet material properties due to the variation of sintering temperature in its manufacturing process to the bullet frangibility factor (FF) is investigated numerically. In addition, the bullet kinetic energy during impact as well as its ricochet and fragmentation are also examined and simulated. Failure criterion based upon maximum strain is employed in the simulation. It is shown that the SPH simulation can produce good estimation for kinetic energy of bullet after impact, thus giving the FF prediction with respect to the variation of frangible bullet material properties. In comparison to explicit finite element (FE) simulation, in which only material/element deletion is shown, convenience in showing frangible bullet fragmentation is shown using the SPH simulation. As a result, the effect of sintering temperature to the way of the frangible bullet fragmented can be also observed clearly.

  18. Long Wavelength Electromagnetic Light Bullets Generated by a 10.6 micron CO2 Ultrashort Pulsed Source

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-11-29

    AFRL-AFOSR-VA-TR-2016-0365 Long Wavelength Electromagnetic Light Bullets Generated by a 10.6 micron CO2 Ultrashort Pulsed Source Jerome Moloney...SUBTITLE "Long Wavelength Electromagnetic Light Bullets Generated by a 10.6 micron CO2 Ultrashort Pulsed Source 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER FA9550-15-1-0272 5b...Wavelength Electromagnetic Light Bullets Generated by a 10 µm CO2 Ultrashort Pulsed Source Grant/Contract Number AFOSR assigned control number. It must

  19. Ghosts of Milky Way's past: the globular cluster ESO 37-1 (E 3)

    Science.gov (United States)

    de la Fuente Marcos, R.; de la Fuente Marcos, C.; Moni Bidin, C.; Ortolani, S.; Carraro, G.

    2015-09-01

    Context. In the Milky Way, most globular clusters are highly conspicuous objects that were found centuries ago. However, a few dozen of them are faint, sparsely populated systems that were identified largely during the second half of the past century. One of the faintest is ESO 37-1 (E 3) and as such it remains poorly studied, with no spectroscopic observations published so far although it was discovered in 1976. Aims: We investigate the globular cluster E 3 in an attempt to better constrain its fundamental parameters. Spectroscopy of stars in the field of E 3 is shown here for the first time. Methods: Deep, precise VI CCD photometry of E 3 down to V ~ 26 mag is presented and analysed. Low-resolution, medium signal-to-noise ratio spectra of nine candidate members are studied to derive radial velocity and metallicity. Proper motions from the UCAC4 catalogue are used to explore the kinematics of the bright members of E 3. Results: Isochrone fitting indicates that E 3 is probably very old, with an age of about 13 Gyr; its distance from the Sun is nearly 10 kpc. It is also somewhat metal rich with [Fe/H] = -0.7. Regarding its kinematics, our tentative estimate for the proper motions is (μα cosδ,μδ) = (-7.0 ± 0.8, 3.5 ± 0.3) mas yr-1 (or a tangential velocity of 382 ± 79 km s-1) and for the radial velocity 45 ± 5 km s-1 in the solar rest frame. Conclusions: E 3 is one of the most intriguing globular clusters in the Galaxy. Having an old age and being metal rich is clearly a peculiar combination, only seen in a handful of objects like the far more conspicuous NGC 104 (47 Tucanae). In addition, its low luminosity and sparse population make it a unique template for the study of the final evolutionary phases in the life of a star cluster. Unfortunately, E 3 is among the most elusive and challenging known globular clusters because field contamination severely hampers spectroscopic studies. This research note is based on observations made with the ESO VLT at the

  20. Merging Galaxy Clusters: Analysis of Simulated Analogs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, Jayke; Wittman, David; Cornell, Hunter

    2018-01-01

    The nature of dark matter can be better constrained by observing merging galaxy clusters. However, uncertainty in the viewing angle leads to uncertainty in dynamical quantities such as 3-d velocities, 3-d separations, and time since pericenter. The classic timing argument links these quantities via equations of motion, but neglects effects of nonzero impact parameter (i.e. it assumes velocities are parallel to the separation vector), dynamical friction, substructure, and larger-scale environment. We present a new approach using n-body cosmological simulations that naturally incorporate these effects. By uniformly sampling viewing angles about simulated cluster analogs, we see projected merger parameters in the many possible configurations of a given cluster. We select comparable simulated analogs and evaluate the likelihood of particular merger parameters as a function of viewing angle. We present viewing angle constraints for a sample of observed mergers including the Bullet cluster and El Gordo, and show that the separation vectors are closer to the plane of the sky than previously reported.

  1. Lead poisoning due to gunshot bullet in contact with cerebrospinal fluid: case report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paulo Roberto de Madureira

    Full Text Available CONTEXT: Lead poisoning due to retained gunshot bullets is a well-known clinical problem that is fairly frequently described in the literature. The risk factors for this occurrence relate mainly to whether the lead bullet is in contact with the joint fluid or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF. The treatment for these cases entails chelation therapy while symptoms are shown and definitive surgical removal of the bullet as a potential source of lead. The aim of this paper is to describe a clinical case of lead poisoning due to a retained gunshot bullet in contact with CSF. CASE REPORT: A 42-year-old male was hit by gunshot bullets during a holdup, and one of them was retained in the spinal cord. Six years later, he developed intense low back pain and underwent laminectomy. Nine years later, he then underwent arthrodesis on L5-S1, but he developed intense abdominal pain after the surgical procedure. For five years, he was treated with calcium versenate in five-day cycles, with a good response. The chelation therapy cycles showed great efficacy during symptomatic periods, thus reducing the symptoms and signs of poisoning and promoting great amounts of lead excretion, thereby reducing the total lead burden responsible for the symptoms. Fortunately, over the last four years, the symptoms have improved and the urine levels of aminolevulinic acid (ALA have declined, to reach complete normalization. This shows that a healing process is probably taking place on the spinal wound, thereby isolating the bullet fragments from CSF contact.

  2. E2 - an intermediate-age LMC cluster

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schommer, R.A.; Olszewski, E.W.; Aaronson, M.; Steward Observatory, Tucson, AZ)

    1986-01-01

    A color-magnitude diagram is presented for the faint star cluster E2, located near the tip of the Magellanic Stream. The main-sequence turnoff, a few giants, and a giant clump can be discerned. Comparisons with VandenBerg models show E2 to be a 1.5 Gyr old cluster with abundance Z of about 0.01 at the distance of the LMC, and thus similar to the more populous intermediate-age LMC clusters. The existence of cluster formation at a large distance from the LMC center (E2 is at almost 8 deg radius) is discussed in the context of the star-formation history, structure, and kinematics of the outer halo of the Large Magellanic Cloud. 42 references

  3. Quantitative/Statistical Approach to Bullet-to-Firearm Identification with Consecutively Manufactured Barrels

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Peter Striupaitis; R.E. Gaensslen

    2005-01-30

    Efforts to use objective image comparison and bullet scanning technologies to distinguish bullets from consecutively manufactured handgun barrels from two manufacturers gave mixed results. The ability of a technology to reliably distinguish between matching and non-matching bullets, where the non-matching bullets were as close in pattern to the matching ones as is probably possible, would provide evidence that the distinctions could be made ''objectively'', and independently of human eyes. That evidence is identical or very close to what seems to be needed to satisfy Daubert standards. It is fair to say that the FTI IBIS image comparison technology correctly distinguished between all the Springfield barrel bullets, and between most but not all of the HiPoint barrel bullets. In the HiPoint cases that were not distinguished 100% of the time, they would he distinguished correctly at least 83% of the time. These results, although obviously limited to the materials used in the comparisons, provide strong evidence that barrel-to-bullet matching is objectively reliable. The results with SciClops were less compelling. The results do not mean that bullet-to-barrel matching is not objectively reliable--rather, they mean that this version of the particular technology could not quite distinguish between these extremely similar yet different bullets as well as the image comparison technology did. In a number of cases, the numerical results made the correct distinctions, although they were close to one another. It is hard to say from this data that this technology differs in its ability to make distinctions between the manufacturers, because the results are very similar with both. The human examiner results were as expected. We did not expect any misidentifications, and there were not any. It would have been preferable to have a higher return rate, and thus more comparisons in the overall sample. As noted, the ''consecutively manufactured barrel

  4. A Bullet-Block Experiment that Explains the Chain Fountain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pantaleone, J.; Smith, R.

    2018-05-01

    It is common in science for two phenomena to appear to be very different, but in fact follow from the same basic principles. Here we consider such a case, the connection between the chain fountain and a bullet-block collision experiment. When an upward moving bullet strikes a wooden block resting on a horizontal table, the block will rise to a higher height when the bullet strikes near the end of the block. This is because the quickly rotating block experiences an additional upward "reaction" force from its contact with the table. Such a reaction force also explains the chain fountain. When a chain falls from a pile in a container to the floor below, the chain rises up above the container. This rise occurs because the quickly rotating links in the container push off of the surface beneath them. We derive a model that accurately describes our measurements in the bullet-block experiment, and then use this same model to calculate an approximate expression for the distance the chain rises above the container. More extensive discussions of the chain fountain are available elsewhere.

  5. When clusters collide: constraints on antimatter on the largest scales

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Steigman, Gary

    2008-01-01

    Observations have ruled out the presence of significant amounts of antimatter in the Universe on scales ranging from the solar system, to the Galaxy, to groups and clusters of galaxies, and even to distances comparable to the scale of the present horizon. Except for the model-dependent constraints on the largest scales, the most significant upper limits to diffuse antimatter in the Universe are those on the ∼Mpc scale of clusters of galaxies provided by the EGRET upper bounds to annihilation gamma rays from galaxy clusters whose intracluster gas is revealed through its x-ray emission. On the scale of individual clusters of galaxies the upper bounds to the fraction of mixed matter and antimatter for the 55 clusters from a flux-limited x-ray survey range from 5 × 10 −9 to −6 , strongly suggesting that individual clusters of galaxies are made entirely of matter or of antimatter. X-ray and gamma-ray observations of colliding clusters of galaxies, such as the Bullet Cluster, permit these constraints to be extended to even larger scales. If the observations of the Bullet Cluster, where the upper bound to the antimatter fraction is found to be −6 , can be generalized to other colliding clusters of galaxies, cosmologically significant amounts of antimatter will be excluded on scales of order ∼20 Mpc (M∼5×10 15 M sun )

  6. Abordagem terapêutica dos projéteis retidos no coração Management of bullets lodged in the heart

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Enoch Brandão de Souza Meira

    2005-03-01

    Full Text Available Paciente do sexo masculino, 29 anos, apresentando ferimento por arma de fogo, com projétil alojado no coração e que chegou ao hospital hemodinamicamente estável. O diagnóstico, evidenciando a localização da bala, foi feito pelo ecocardiograma transesofágico (ET. Após 18 dias, foi submetido à cirurgia eletiva, sem circulação extracorpórea (CEC, para retirada do projétil encravado em parede anterior do ventrículo direito (VD e septo interventricular (SIV, com sucesso. Os autores discutem a conduta terapêutica para os projéteis retidos no coração, com base na literatura consultada, concluindo que a cirurgia para remoção dos mesmos pode ser indicada em pacientes assintomáticos individualizados.A 29-year-old man presented with a bullet lodged in his heart. He arrived at the hospital in a hemodynamically stable condition. The transesophageal echocardiogram performed for diagnosis revealed the location of the bullet. After 18 days, he underwent an elective off-pump cardiac surgery fto remove the bullet from the right ventricle wall and interventricular septum. The postoperative evolution was uneventful. The authors discuss the therapeutic options for removing bullets from thr heart, based on published data. They concluded that some asymptomatic patients with a bullet embedded in the heart should undergo surgery.

  7. Association of papillomavirus E6 proteins with either MAML1 or E6AP clusters E6 proteins by structure, function, and evolutionary relatedness.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicole Brimer

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Papillomavirus E6 proteins bind to LXXLL peptide motifs displayed on targeted cellular proteins. Alpha genus HPV E6 proteins associate with the cellular ubiquitin ligase E6AP (UBE3A, by binding to an LXXLL peptide (ELTLQELLGEE displayed by E6AP, thereby stimulating E6AP ubiquitin ligase activity. Beta, Gamma, and Delta genera E6 proteins bind a similar LXXLL peptide (WMSDLDDLLGS on the cellular transcriptional co-activator MAML1 and thereby repress Notch signaling. We expressed 45 different animal and human E6 proteins from diverse papillomavirus genera to ascertain the overall preference of E6 proteins for E6AP or MAML1. E6 proteins from all HPV genera except Alpha preferentially interacted with MAML1 over E6AP. Among animal papillomaviruses, E6 proteins from certain ungulate (SsPV1 from pigs and cetacean (porpoises and dolphins hosts functionally resembled Alpha genus HPV by binding and targeting the degradation of E6AP. Beta genus HPV E6 proteins functionally clustered with Delta, Pi, Tau, Gamma, Chi, Mu, Lambda, Iota, Dyokappa, Rho, and Dyolambda E6 proteins to bind and repress MAML1. None of the tested E6 proteins physically and functionally interacted with both MAML1 and E6AP, indicating an evolutionary split. Further, interaction of an E6 protein was insufficient to activate degradation of E6AP, indicating that E6 proteins that target E6AP co-evolved to separately acquire both binding and triggering of ubiquitin ligase activation. E6 proteins with similar biological function clustered together in phylogenetic trees and shared structural features. This suggests that the divergence of E6 proteins from either MAML1 or E6AP binding preference is a major event in papillomavirus evolution.

  8. Laparoscopic Bullet Removal in a Penetrating Abdominal Gunshot

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christos Stefanou

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Penetrating abdominal trauma has been traditionally treated by exploratory laparotomy. Nowadays laparoscopy has become an accepted practice in hemodynamically stable patient without signs of peritonitis. We report a case of a lower anterior abdominal gunshot patient treated laparoscopically. A 32-year-old male presented to the Emergency Department with complaint of gunshot penetrating injury at left lower anterior abdominal wall. The patient had no symptoms or obvious bleeding and was vitally stable. On examination we identified 1 cm diameter entry wound at the left lower abdominal wall. The imaging studies showed the bullet in the peritoneal cavity but no injured intraperitoneal and retroperitoneal viscera. We decided to remove the bullet laparoscopically. Twenty-four hours after the intervention the patient was discharged. The decision for managing gunshot patients should be based on clinical and diagnostic findings. Anterior abdominal injuries in a stable patient without other health problems can be managed laparoscopically.

  9. The Business Cluster's Distribution e-Channels

    OpenAIRE

    Milan Davidovic

    2011-01-01

    The business cluster cooperative potential and business capability improvement are dependent on e-business implementation and business model change dynamics in cluster and his members based in new and existing distribution channels, customer relationships management and supplychain integration. In this work analyse cluster’s e-business models, e-commerce forms and distribution e-channels for three business cases: when cluster members are oriented on own business, on cooperative’s project or c...

  10. Intra-myocardial Bullet causing heart block in a patient with multiple ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    consolidation and bullet lodged above the diaphragm. The chest radiograph showed bullet lodged above the diaphragm. ARDS resolved markedly over the following. 7 days. However, there were persistent bronchial breath sounds in the left lower lung with purulent secretions and collapse with consolidation. CT scan of the ...

  11. Effects of human decomposition on test fired bullet – An experimental research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dinesh Rao

    2016-03-01

    The observations through comparison microscope indicated that the individual characteristic (microscopic markings on the bullet in the form of microstriae showed complete corrosion or obscuring by the 10th day. The surface appeared smooth, onset of corrosion process was noted on the 2nd day and by the 4th day 50% obscuring of the marks was noted. This change in the markings of the metal surface of the bullet was uniform to all the ammunitions used in this study. The control bullets showed no such changes during the period of study. The study confirms the existence of a potential danger in dealing with crime bullets retrieved from putrefied bodies. It also highlights the importance of early retrieval of dead bodies in firearm deaths and the importance of proper storage facilities to deal with cases of firearm deaths.

  12. Cell adhesion during bullet motion in capillaries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Takeishi, Naoki; Imai, Yohsuke; Ishida, Shunichi; Omori, Toshihiro; Kamm, Roger D; Ishikawa, Takuji

    2016-08-01

    A numerical analysis is presented of cell adhesion in capillaries whose diameter is comparable to or smaller than that of the cell. In contrast to a large number of previous efforts on leukocyte and tumor cell rolling, much is still unknown about cell motion in capillaries. The solid and fluid mechanics of a cell in flow was coupled with a slip bond model of ligand-receptor interactions. When the size of a capillary was reduced, the cell always transitioned to "bullet-like" motion, with a consequent decrease in the velocity of the cell. A state diagram was obtained for various values of capillary diameter and receptor density. We found that bullet motion enables firm adhesion of a cell to the capillary wall even for a weak ligand-receptor binding. We also quantified effects of various parameters, including the dissociation rate constant, the spring constant, and the reactive compliance on the characteristics of cell motion. Our results suggest that even under the interaction between P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 (PSGL-1) and P-selectin, which is mainly responsible for leukocyte rolling, a cell is able to show firm adhesion in a small capillary. These findings may help in understanding such phenomena as leukocyte plugging and cancer metastasis. Copyright © 2016 the American Physiological Society.

  13. Damage to apparel layers and underlying tissue due to hand-gun bullets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carr, Debra; Kieser, Jules; Mabbott, Alexander; Mott, Charlotte; Champion, Stephen; Girvan, Elizabeth

    2014-01-01

    Ballistic damage to the clothing of victims of gunshot wounds to the chest can provide useful forensic evidence. Anyone shot in the torso will usually be wearing clothing which will be damaged by the penetrating impact event and can reportedly be the source of some of the debris in the wound. Minimal research has previously been reported regarding the effect of bullets on apparel fabrics and underlying tissue. This paper examines the effect of ammunition (9 mm full metal jacket [FMJ] DM11 A1B2, 8.0 g; and soft point flat nose Remington R357M3, 10.2 g) on clothing layers that cover the torso (T-shirt, T-shirt plus hoodie, T-shirt plus denim jacket) and underlying structures represented by porcine thoracic wall (skin, underlying tissue, ribs). Impacts were recorded using a Phantom V12 high speed camera. Ejected bone debris was collected before wound tracts were dissected and measured; any debris found was recovered for further analysis. Size and mass of bony debris was recorded; fibre debris recovered from the wound and impact damage to fabrics were imaged using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Remington R357M3 ammunition was characteristically associated with stellate fabric damage; individual fibres were less likely to show mushrooming. In contrast, 9 mm FMJ ammunition resulted in punch-out damage to fabric layers, with mushrooming of individual fibres being more common. Entry wound sizes were similar for both types of ammunition and smaller than the diameter of the bullet that caused them. In this work, the Remington R357M3 ammunition resulted in larger exit wounds due to the bullet construction which mushroomed. That fabric coverings did not affect the amount of bony debris produced is interesting, particularly given there was some evidence that apparel layers affected the size of the wound. Recent work has suggested that denim (representative of jeans) can exacerbate wounding caused by high-velocity bullet impacts to the thigh when the bullet does not

  14. Determining tissue-lead levels in large game mammals harvested with lead bullets: human health concerns.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsuji, L J S; Wainman, B C; Jayasinghe, R K; VanSpronsen, E P; Liberda, E N

    2009-04-01

    Recently, the use of lead isotope ratios has definitively identified lead ammunition as a source of lead exposure for First Nations people, but the isotope ratios for lead pellets and bullets were indistinguishable. Thus, lead-contaminated meat from game harvested with lead bullets may also be contributing to the lead body burden; however, few studies have determined if lead bullet fragments are present in big game carcasses. We found elevated tissue-lead concentrations (up to 5,726.0 microg/g ww) in liver (5/9) and muscle (6/7) samples of big game harvested with lead bullets and radiographic evidence of lead fragments. Thus, we would advise that the tissue surrounding the wound channel be removed and discarded, as this tissue may be contaminated by lead bullet fragments.

  15. China's bullet trains facilitate market integration and mitigate the cost of megacity growth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Siqi; Kahn, Matthew E

    2013-04-02

    Megacity growth in the developing world is fueled by a desire to access their large local labor markets. Growing megacities suffer from high levels of traffic congestion and pollution, which degrade local quality of life. Transportation technology that allows individuals to access the megacity without living within its boundaries offers potentially large social benefits, because individuals can enjoy the benefits of urban agglomeration while not paying megacity real estate rents and suffering from the city's social costs. This paper presents evidence supporting the claim that China's bullet trains are playing this role. The bullet train is regarded as one of the most significant technological breakthroughs in passenger transportation developed in the second half of the 20th century. Starting in 2007, China has introduced several new bullet trains that connect megacities such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou with nearby cities. Through facilitating market integration, bullet trains will stimulate the development of second- and third-tier cities. By offering households and firms a larger menu of location alternatives, bullet trains help to protect the quality of life of the growing urban population. We document that this transport innovation is associated with rising real estate prices in the nearby secondary cities.

  16. Endoscopic Removal of a Bullet That Migrated to the Third Ventricle Causing Hydrocephalus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aydoseli, Aydın; Unal, Tugrul Cem; Aras, Yavuz; Sabanci, Pulat Akın; Altunrende, Emre; Izgi, Nail

    2017-09-01

    Hydrocephalus caused by an intraventricular bullet is a rare event. We report a case of endoscopic removal of an intraventricular bullet. A 66-year-old man was admitted with a gunshot wound to the head after a suicide attempt. The bullet migrated from the frontal parenchyma to the third ventricle day 4 of admission. On day 21 of admission, the patient developed hydrocephalus with obstruction of the cerebral aqueduct. The bullet was accessed through an endoscopic third ventriculostomy and removed using an endoscope. Hydrocephalus may develop in patients with intraventricular foreign objects. When such objects must be removed, the endoscopic approach is a safe, efficient, and minimally invasive procedure. To our knowledge, this is the first case in the literature of foreign object removal from the ventricle via a transcortical endoscopic approach. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  17. Ferromagnetic behavior in linear charge-transfer complexes. Structural and magnetic characterization of octamethylferrocene salts: (Fe(C sub 5 Me sub 4 H) sub 2 ) sup sm bullet + (A) sup sm bullet minus (A = TCNE, TCNQ)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Miller, J.S.; Glatzhofer, D.T.; O' Hare, D.M. (E.I. de Pont de Nemours and Co., Inc., Wilmington, DE (USA)); Reiff, W.M. (Northeastern Univ., Boston, MA (USA)); Chakraborty, A.; Epstein, A.J. (Ohio Sate Univ., Columbus (USA))

    1989-07-26

    The reaction of Fe{sup II}({eta}{sup 5}-C{sub 5}Me{sub 4}H){sub 2} with cyano acceptors A (A = TCNE (tetracyanoethylene), TCNQ (7,7,8,8-tetracyano-p-quanodimethane), n-C{sub 4}(CN){sub 6} (n-hexacyanobutadiene), C{sub 6}(CN){sub 6} (tris(dicyanomethylene)cyclopropane), DDQ (2,3-dichloro-5,6-dicyanobenzoquinone), TCNQF{sub 4} (perfluoro-7,7,8,8-tetracyano-p-quinodimethane) results in formation of 1:1 charge-transfer salts of (Fe{sup III})(C{sub 5}Me{sub 4}H){sub 2}){sup {sm bullet}+}(A){sup {sm bullet}{minus}} composition. The TCNE and TCNQ complexes have been structurally characterized. The high-temperature magnetic susceptibility for polycrystalline samples of these complexes can be fit by the Curie-Qeiss law, {chi} = C(T-{theta}){sup {minus}1}, with {theta} = +0.5 {plus minus} 2.2 K, and {mu}{sub eff} ranges from 2.71 to 3.97 {mu}{sub B}, suggesting that the polycrystalline samples measured had varying degrees of orientation. The 7.0 K EPR spectrum of the radical cation exhibits an axially symmetric powder pattern with g{sub {parallel}} = 4.11 and g{sub {perpendicular}} = 1.42, and the EPR parameters are essentially identical with those reported for ferrocenium and decamethylferrocenium. No EPR spectrum is observed at 78 K. Akin to the (Fe(C{sub 5}Me{sub 5}){sub 2}){sup {sm bullet}+} salts, these salts have {sup 57}Fe Moessbauer spectra consistent with complete charge transfer; however, unlike the case for the former complexes, quadrupole splittings of 0.30 and 0.220 mm/s are observed at 4.8 and 298 K, respectively. The absence of strong interionic magnetic coupling for the (Fe(C{sub 5}Me{sub 4}H){sub 2}){sup {sm bullet}+} salts contrasts with the behavior of the (Fe(C{sub 5}Me{sub 5}){sub 2}){sup {sm bullet}+} salts. 26 refs., 13 figs., 8 tabs.

  18. [Bullet and shrapnel injuries in the face and neck regions. Current aspects of wound ballistics].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hauer, T; Huschitt, N; Kulla, M; Kneubuehl, B; Willy, C

    2011-08-01

    A basic understanding of the ballistic behaviour of projectiles or fragments after entering the human body is essential for the head and neck surgeon in the military environment in order to anticipate the diagnostic and therapeutic consequences of this type of injury. Although a large number of factors influence the missile in flight and after penetration of the body, the most important factor is the amount of energy transmitted to the tissue. Long guns (rifles or shotguns) have a much higher muzzle energy compared to handguns, explaining why the remote effects beyond the bullet track play a major role. While most full metal jacket bullets release their energy after 12-20 cm (depending on the calibre), soft point bullets release their energy immediately after entry into the human body. This results in a major difference in extremity wounds, but not so much in injuries with long bullet paths (e.g. diagonal shots). Shrapnel wounds are usually produced with similarly high kinetic energy to those caused by hand- and long guns. However, fragments tend to dissipate the entire amount of energy within the body, which increases the degree of tissue disruption. Of all relevant injuries in the head and neck region, soft tissue injuries make up the largest proportion (60%), while injuries to the face are seen three times more often than injuries to the neck. Concomitant intracranial or spinal injury is seen in 30% of cases. Due to high levels of wound contamination, the infection rate is approximately 15%, often associated with a complicated and/or multiresistant spectrum of germs.

  19. Simulating direct shear tests with the Bullet physics library: A validation study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Izadi, Ehsan; Bezuijen, Adam

    2018-01-01

    This study focuses on the possible uses of physics engines, and more specifically the Bullet physics library, to simulate granular systems. Physics engines are employed extensively in the video gaming, animation and movie industries to create physically plausible scenes. They are designed to deliver a fast, stable, and optimal simulation of certain systems such as rigid bodies, soft bodies and fluids. This study focuses exclusively on simulating granular media in the context of rigid body dynamics with the Bullet physics library. The first step was to validate the results of the simulations of direct shear testing on uniform-sized metal beads on the basis of laboratory experiments. The difference in the average angle of mobilized frictions was found to be only 1.0°. In addition, a very close match was found between dilatancy in the laboratory samples and in the simulations. A comprehensive study was then conducted to determine the failure and post-failure mechanism. We conclude with the presentation of a simulation of a direct shear test on real soil which demonstrated that Bullet has all the capabilities needed to be used as software for simulating granular systems.

  20. Stunning effect of different rifle-bullets for slaughter of outdoor cattle

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stefanie Retz

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The slaughter method via gunshot implies a stunning of cattle by means of a targeted shot from a rifle and is as an alternative to regular slaughter at abattoirs. This method is only permitted under restricted circumstances and if the cattle is held on a pasture all the year. However, there is a considerable lack of specifications regulated by law concerning calibre and bullet-type. In this study, four different calibres, two bullet-types and two different shot placements were investigated with respect to their stunning efficiency. All of the calibres exhibited an entry-energy over 400 J and provided sufficient stunning potential. Yet, only calibre .22 Magnum caused no exit of the bullet out of the scull, which provides higher safety conditions for man and cattle.

  1. Electric field measurements on plasma bullets in N2 using four-wave mixing

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van der Schans, M.; Böhm, P.; Nijdam, S.; IJzerman, W.L.; Czarnetzki, U.

    2015-01-01

    Atmospheric pressure plasma jets driven by pulsed DC or kHz AC voltages typically consist of discrete guided ionisation waves called plasma bullets. In this work, the electric field of plasma bullets generated in a pulsed DC jet with N2 as feed gas is investigated. Electric field measurements in N2

  2. Stabilizing lead bullets in shooting range soil by phosphate-based surface coating

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bin Hua

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Soil lead (Pb is well known as a threat to human health and ecosystem. Although relatively insoluble, lead bullets in shooting range soil can be readily released into soluble forms through natural weathering processes and thus pose significant human and environmental risks. In this study, laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate if the Pb bullets in shooting range soil can be stabilized through surface coating of phosphate-based materials. Results indicated that FePO4 or AlPO4 coatings, insoluble metal phosphates, have been successfully formed on the surface of the Pb bullets. The EPA Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP test showed that FePO4 or AlPO4 surface coating would effectively reduce the Pb solubility or leachability of the bullets. The surface coating under pH of <5.5 for 7 days could achieve 92–100% reduction, with 85–98% by FePO4 coating and 77–98% by AlPO4 coating as compared with the non-coating. Leachable Pb concentration in the contaminated shooting range soil was reduced by 85–98% or 77–98% as a result of the FePO4 or AlPO4 solution treatment. This study demonstrated that the FePO4 or AlPO4–based surface coating on lead bullets can effectively inhibit the Pb weathering and significantly reduce the Pb release from soil through in situ chemical stabilization, which could be potentially applicable as a cost-effective and environmental-sound technology for the remediation of Pb-contaminated shooting range soil.

  3. Stick–slip behavior identified in helium cluster growth in the subsurface of tungsten: effects of cluster depth

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Jinlong; Niu, Liang-Liang; Shu, Xiaolin; Zhang, Ying

    2015-01-01

    We have performed a molecular dynamics study on the growth of helium (He) clusters in the subsurface of tungsten (W) (1 0 0) at 300 K, focusing on the role of cluster depth. Irregular ‘stick–slip’ behavior exhibited during the evolution of the He cluster growth is identified, which is due to the combined effects of the continuous cluster growth and the loop punching induced pressure relief. We demonstrate that the He cluster grows via trap-mutation and loop punching mechanisms. Initially, the self-interstitial atom SIA clusters are almost always attached to the He cluster; while they are instantly emitted to the surface once a critical cluster pressure is reached. The repetition of this process results in the He cluster approaching the surface via a ‘stop-and-go’ manner and the formation of surface adatom islands (surface roughening), ultimately leading to cluster bursting and He escape. We reveal that, for the Nth loop punching event, the critical size of the He cluster to trigger loop punching and the size of the emitted SIA clusters are correspondingly increased with the increasing initial cluster depth. We tentatively attribute the observed depth effects to the lower formation energies of Frenkel pairs and the greatly reduced barriers for loop punching in the stress field of the W subsurface. In addition, some intriguing features emerge, such as the morphological transformation of the He cluster from ‘platelet-like’ to spherical, to ellipsoidal with a ‘bullet-like’ tip, and finally to a ‘bottle-like’ shape after cluster rupture. (paper)

  4. Diet-derived microRNAs: unicorn or silver bullet?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Witwer, Kenneth W; Zhang, Chen-Yu

    2017-01-01

    In ancient lore, a bullet cast from silver is the only effective weapon against monsters. The uptake of active diet-derived microRNAs (miRNAs) in consumers may be the silver bullet long sought after in nutrition and oral therapeutics. However, the majority of scientists consider the transfer and regulation of consumer's gene activity by these diet-derived miRNAs to be a fantasy akin to spotting a unicorn. Nevertheless, groups like Dr. Chen-Yu Zhang's lab in Nanjing University have stockpiled breathtaking amounts of data to shoot down these naysayers. Meanwhile, Dr. Ken Witwer at John Hopkins has steadfastly cautioned the field to beware of fallacies caused by contamination, technical artifacts, and confirmation bias. Here, Dr. Witwer and Dr. Zhang share their realities of dietary miRNAs by answering five questions related to this controversial field.

  5. Lead poisoning from retained bullets: pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Linden, M.A.; Manton, W.I.; Stewart, R.M.; Thal, E.R.; Feit, H.

    1982-01-01

    Lead intoxication (plumbism) from retained bullets has rarely been reported but may be fatal if unrecognized. Bullets lodged within joint spaces or pseudocysts are more likely to develop this complication, although patients with retained missiles in other locations may also be at risk. Subtle findings such as the occurrence of unexplained anemia, abdominal colic, nephropathy, or neurologic deterioration in patients with retained missiles may suggest consideration of plumbism. An intercurrent metabolic stress such as infection, endocrinopathy, or alcoholism may be a precipitating factor. Among the various diagnostic studies available, mass spectrometric stable isotope dilution analysis may be the most reliable. It is important to employ chelation therapy prior to any operative intervention. This will reduce the mobilization of lead from bone during or following the surgical procedure

  6. Genomic presence of gadD1 glutamate decarboxylase correlates with the organization of ascB-dapE internalin cluster in Listeria monocytogenes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Jianshun; Fang, Chun; Zheng, Tianlun; Zhu, Ningyu; Bei, Yijiang; Fang, Weihuan

    2012-02-01

    The ability to survive and proliferate in acidic environments is a prerequisite for the infection of Listeria monocytogenes. The glutamate decarboxylase (GAD) system is responsible for acid resistance, and three GAD homologs have been identified in L. monocytogenes: gadD1, gadD2, and gadD3. To examine whether GAD genes are specific to lineage, serovar, or certain subpopulation, we performed a systematic investigation on the prevalence of GAD genes in 164 L. monocytogenes. In contrast to gadD2 and gadD3 conserved in all L. monocytogenes strains, gadD1 was identified in 36.6% (60/164) of L. monocytogenes strains, including all serovar 1/2c and 68.5% (37/54) of serovar 1/2a strains, as well as a small fraction of serovar 1/2b (3.4%, 1/29) and lineage III (13.8%, 4/29) strains. All serovar 4b and lineage IV strains lacked this gene. According to the ascB-dapE structure, L. monocytogenes strains were classified into four subpopulations, carrying inlC2DE, inlGC2DE, inlGHE, or no internalin cluster, respectively. All L. monocytogenes strains with inlGC2DE or inlGHE pattern harbored gadD1, whereas those bearing inlC2DE or no internalin cluster between ascB and dapE lacked gadD1. In addition, other five non-monocytogenes Listeria species lacking ascB-dapE internalin cluster were gadD1-negative. Overall, the presence of gadD1 is not fully dependent on lineages or serovars but correlates with ascB-dapE internalin profiles, suggesting gadD1 might have co-evolved with the ascB-dapE internalin cluster in the primitive L. monocytogenes before divergence of serovars.

  7. Oral lead bullet fragment exposure in northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kerr, Richard; Holladay, Jeremy; Holladay, Steven; Tannenbaum, Lawrence; Selcer, Barbara; Meldrum, Blair; Williams, Susan; Jarrett, Timothy; Gogal, Robert

    2011-11-01

    Lead (Pb) is a worldwide environmental contaminant known to adversely affect multiple organ systems in both mammalian and avian species. In birds, a common route of exposure is via oral ingestion of lead particles. Data are currently lacking for the retention and clearance of Pb bullet fragments in gastrointestinal (GI) tract of birds while linking toxicity with blood Pb levels. In the present study, northern bobwhite quail fed a seed-based diet were orally gavaged with Pb bullet fragments (zero, one or five fragments/bird) and evaluated for rate of fragment clearance, and changes in peripheral blood, renal, immune, and gastrointestinal parameters. Based on radiographs, the majority of the birds cleared or absorbed the fragments by seven days, with the exception of one five-fragment bird which took between 7 and 14 days. Blood Pb levels were higher in males than females, which may be related to egg production in females. In males but not females, feed consumption, body weight gain, packed cell volume (PCV), plasma protein concentration, and δ-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (δ-ALAD) activity were all adversely affected by five Pb fragments. Birds of both sexes that received a single Pb fragment displayed depressed δ-ALAD, suggesting altered hematologic function, while all birds dosed with five bullet fragments exhibited greater morbidity.

  8. Clustering and segregation of small vacancy clusters near tungsten (0 0 1) surface

    Science.gov (United States)

    Duan, Guohua; Li, Xiangyan; Xu, Yichun; Zhang, Yange; Jiang, Yan; Hao, Congyu; Liu, C. S.; Fang, Q. F.; Chen, Jun-Ling; Luo, G.-N.; Wang, Zhiguang

    2018-01-01

    Nanoporous metals have been shown to exhibit radiation-tolerance due to the trapping of the defects by the surface. However, the behavior of vacancy clusters near the surface is not clear which involves the competition between the self-trapping and segregation of small vacancy clusters (Vn) nearby the surface. In this study, we investigated the energetic and kinetic properties of small vacancy clusters near tungsten (0 0 1) surface by combining molecular statics (MS) calculations and object Kinetic Monte Carlo (OKMC) simulations. Results show that vacancies could be clustered with the reduced formation energy and migration energy of the single vacancy around a cluster as the respective energetic and kinetic driving forces. The small cluster has a migration energy barrier comparable to that for the single vacancy; the migration energy barriers for V1-5 and V7 are 1.80, 1.94, 2.17, 2.78, 3.12 and 3.11 eV, respectively. Clusters and become unstable near surface (0 0 1) and tend to dissociate into the surface. At the operation temperature of 1000 K, the single vacancy, V2, 2 V 3 V3 and V4 were observed to segregate to the surface within a time of one hour. Meanwhile, larger clusters survived near the surface, which could serve as nucleating center for voids near the surface. Our results suggest that under a low radiation dose, surface (0 0 1) could act as a sink for small vacancy clusters, alleviating defect accumulation in the material under a low radiation dose. We also obtained several empirical expressions for the vacancy cluster formation energy, binding energy, and trapping radius as a function of the number of vacancies in the cluster.

  9. The virtual double-slit experiment to High School level (Part I: behavior classical analysis (with bullets and waves and development of computational software

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Danilo Cardoso Ferreira

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/2175-7941.2016v33n2p697   This paper analyses the double-slit virtual experiment and it composed of two parts: The part I covers the classical theory (with bullets and waves and the part II covers the interference with electrons or photons. Firstly, we have analyzed the same experiment that shoots a stream of bullets. In front of the gun we have a wall that has in it two holes just big enough to let a bullet through. Beyond the wall is a backstop (say a thick wall of wood which will absorb the bullets when they hit it. In this case, the probabilities just add together. The effect with both holes open is the sum of effects with each holes open alone. We have shown it for high school level. Next, we have analyzed a same experiment with water waves. The intensity observed when both holes are open is certainly not the sum of the intensity of the wave from hole 1 (which we find by measuring when hole 2 is blocked off and the intensity of the wave form hole 2 (seen when hole 1 is blocked. Finally, we have shown a software developed by students about double-slit experiment with bullets.

  10. Tear Gas, Expanding Bullets and Plain-Clothed Personnel

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wiesener, Cornelius Rust

    2017-01-01

    This article examines the interplay between human rights law and humanitarian law in relation to riot control agents (such as tear gas), expanding bullets and plain-clothed forces. While outlawed under humanitarian law, they are widely used by police in peace time and not subject to similar bans...

  11. Characteristics of behind armor blunt trauma produced by bullets with different structural materials: an experimental study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ling-qing WANG

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Objective To investigate the effect of structural materials of bullets on behind armor blunt trauma (BABT. Methods Ten healthy male Landraces were randomly divided into two groups (5 each: 56 type 7.62-mm rifle bullet group and SS109 5.56-mm rifle bullet group. The kinetic energy of two types of bullets was adjusted to the same level (about 1880J by the way of grow downwards gunpowder. Then the animals as protected with both grade NIJ Ⅲ ceramic hard armor and grade Ⅱ police soft body armor, were shot at the left midclavicular line of fourth intercostal space (shooting distance was 25m. The damage to the animals was observed. Other 2 healthy male Landraces were selected, and biomechanical sensor was subcutaneously implanted into the soft tissue in precordium and intracalvarium to detect the pressure at the time point of bullet contact under the protection of armor, and the relationship between pressure and damage was analyzed. Results Respiration, heart rate and systolic arterial pressure of animals in two groups were all elevated after injury, but there was no significant difference between the two groups. No obvious change was found on blood oxygen saturation of both groups. Gross anatomy showed the predominant local injury was cardiac and pulmonary contusions. The area of pulmonary hemorrhage of 7.62mm group was 6.00%±3.18%, significantly higher than that of 5.56mm group (3.59%±2.11%, P<0.05. Histopathological examination revealed acute injuries of lung tissues, myocardial tissue and cerebral cortical neurons. The contents of cardiac troponin T (TnT, creatine kinase (CK and creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB isoenzyme were all increased 3 hours after injury, and the rise was higher in 7.62mm group than in 5.56mm group (P<0.05. Biomechanical testing showed the pressure of precordium and intracalvarium was elevated at the moment of bullet contact, and the rise was higher in 7.62mm group than in 5.56mm group (P<0.05. Conclusions

  12. Adaptive Generation and Diagnostics of Linear Few-Cycle Light Bullets

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martin Bock

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available Recently we introduced the class of highly localized wavepackets (HLWs as a generalization of optical Bessel-like needle beams. Here we report on the progress in this field. In contrast to pulsed Bessel beams and Airy beams, ultrashort-pulsed HLWs propagate with high stability in both spatial and temporal domain, are nearly paraxial (supercollimated, have fringe-less spatial profiles and thus represent the best possible approximation to linear “light bullets”. Like Bessel beams and Airy beams, HLWs show self-reconstructing behavior. Adaptive HLWs can be shaped by ultraflat three-dimensional phase profiles (generalized axicons which are programmed via calibrated grayscale maps of liquid-crystal-on-silicon spatial light modulators (LCoS-SLMs. Light bullets of even higher complexity can either be freely formed from quasi-continuous phase maps or discretely composed from addressable arrays of identical nondiffracting beams. The characterization of few-cycle light bullets requires spatially resolved measuring techniques. In our experiments, wavefront, pulse and phase were detected with a Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor, 2D-autocorrelation and spectral phase interferometry for direct electric-field reconstruction (SPIDER. The combination of the unique propagation properties of light bullets with the flexibility of adaptive optics opens new prospects for applications of structured light like optical tweezers, microscopy, data transfer and storage, laser fusion, plasmon control or nonlinear spectroscopy.

  13. DISCOVERY OF 'WARM DUST' GALAXIES IN CLUSTERS AT z {approx} 0.3: EVIDENCE FOR STRIPPING OF COOL DUST IN THE DENSE ENVIRONMENT?

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rawle, T. D.; Rex, M.; Egami, E.; Walth, G.; Pereira, M. J. [Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, 933 N. Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Chung, S. M.; Gonzalez, A. H. [Department of Astronomy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611-2055 (United States); Perez-Gonzalez, P. G. [Departamento de Astrofisica, Facultad de CC. Fisicas,Universidad Complutense de Madrid, E-28040 Madrid (Spain); Smail, I. [Institute for Computational Cosmology, Durham University, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE (United Kingdom); Altieri, B.; Valtchanov, I. [Herschel Science Centre, ESAC, ESA, P.O. Box 78, Villanueva de la Canada, E-28691 Madrid (Spain); Appleton, P.; Fadda, D. [IPAC, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Alba, A. Berciano [ASTRON, Oude Hoogeveensedijk 4, NL-7991 PD Dwingeloo (Netherlands); Blain, A. W. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH (United Kingdom); Dessauges-Zavadsky, M. [Observatoire de Geneve, Universite de Geneve, 51 Ch. des Maillettes, CH-1290 Sauverny (Switzerland); Van der Werf, P. P. [Sterrewacht Leiden, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9513, NL-2300 RA Leiden (Netherlands); Zemcov, M., E-mail: trawle@as.arizona.edu [Department of Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)

    2012-09-10

    Using far-infrared imaging from the 'Herschel Lensing Survey', we derive dust properties of spectroscopically confirmed cluster member galaxies within two massive systems at z {approx} 0.3: the merging Bullet Cluster and the more relaxed MS2137.3-2353. Most star-forming cluster sources ({approx}90%) have characteristic dust temperatures similar to local field galaxies of comparable infrared (IR) luminosity (T{sub dust} {approx} 30 K). Several sub-luminous infrared galaxy (LIRG; L{sub IR} < 10{sup 11} L{sub Sun }) Bullet Cluster members are much warmer (T{sub dust} > 37 K) with far-infrared spectral energy distribution (SED) shapes resembling LIRG-type local templates. X-ray and mid-infrared data suggest that obscured active galactic nuclei do not contribute significantly to the infrared flux of these 'warm dust' galaxies. Sources of comparable IR luminosity and dust temperature are not observed in the relaxed cluster MS2137, although the significance is too low to speculate on an origin involving recent cluster merging. 'Warm dust' galaxies are, however, statistically rarer in field samples (>3{sigma}), indicating that the responsible mechanism may relate to the dense environment. The spatial distribution of these sources is similar to the whole far-infrared bright population, i.e., preferentially located in the cluster periphery, although the galaxy hosts tend toward lower stellar masses (M{sub *} < 10{sup 10} M{sub Sun }). We propose dust stripping and heating processes which could be responsible for the unusually warm characteristic dust temperatures. A normal star-forming galaxy would need 30%-50% of its dust removed (preferentially stripped from the outer reaches, where dust is typically cooler) to recover an SED similar to a 'warm dust' galaxy. These progenitors would not require a higher IR luminosity or dust mass than the currently observed normal star-forming population.

  14. ''Heavy light bullets'' in electron-positron plasma

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Berezhiani, V.I.; Mahajan, S.M.

    1995-03-01

    The nonlinear propagation of circularly polarized electromagnetic waves with relativistically strong amplitudes in an unmagnetized hot electron-positron plasma with a small fraction of ions is investigated. The possibility of finding localized solutions in such a plasma is explored. It is shown that these plasmas support the propagation of ''heavy light bullets''; nondiffracting and nondispersive electromagnetic (EM) pulses with large density bunching. (author). 24 refs, 12 figs

  15. Inconsistency in 9 mm bullets: correlation of jacket thickness to post-impact geometry measured with non-destructive X-ray computed tomography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thornby, John; Landheer, Dirk; Williams, Tim; Barnes-Warden, Jane; Fenne, Paul; Norman, Danielle G; Attridge, Alex; Williams, Mark A

    2014-01-01

    Fundamental to any ballistic armour standard is the reference projectile to be defeated. Typically, for certification purposes, a consistent and symmetrical bullet geometry is assumed, however variations in bullet jacket dimensions can have far reaching consequences. Traditionally, characteristics and internal dimensions have been analysed by physically sectioning bullets--an approach which is of restricted scope and which precludes subsequent ballistic assessment. The use of a non-destructive X-ray computed tomography (CT) method has been demonstrated and validated (Kumar et al., 2011 [15]); the authors now apply this technique to correlate bullet impact response with jacket thickness variations. A set of 20 bullets (9 mm DM11) were selected for comparison and an image-based analysis method was employed to map jacket thickness and determine the centre of gravity of each specimen. Both intra- and inter-bullet variations were investigated, with thickness variations of the order of 200 μm commonly found along the length of all bullets and angular variations of up to 50 μm in some. The bullets were subsequently impacted against a rigid flat plate under controlled conditions (observed on a high-speed video camera) and the resulting deformed projectiles were re-analysed. The results of the experiments demonstrate a marked difference in ballistic performance between bullets from different manufacturers and an asymmetric thinning of the jacket is observed in regions of pre-impact weakness. The conclusions are relevant for future soft armour standards and provide important quantitative data for numerical model correlation and development. The implications of the findings of the work on the reliability and repeatability of the industry standard V50 ballistic test are also discussed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Measurement of bullet impact conditions using automated in-flight photography system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ryan Decker

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Knowledge of impact conditions is critical to evaluating the terminal impact performance of a projectile. For a small caliber bullet, in-flight velocity has been precisely measured for decades using detection screens, but accurately quantifying the orientation of the bullet on a target has been more challenging. This report introduces the Automated Small-Arms Photogrammetry (ASAP analysis method used to measure, model, and predict the orientation of a small caliber bullet before reaching an impact surface. ASAP uses advanced hardware developed by Sydor Technologies to record a series of infrared digital photographs. Individual images (four orthogonal pairs are processed using computer vision algorithms to quantify the orientation of the projectile and re-project its precise position and orientation into a three-dimensional muzzle-fixed coordinate system. An epicyclic motion model is fit to the measured data, and the epicyclic motion is extrapolated to the target location. Analysis results are fairly immediate and may be reviewed during testing. Prove-out demonstrations have shown that the impact-angle prediction capability is less than six hundredths of a degree for the 5.56 mm ball round tested. Keywords: Yaw, Terminal ballistics, Exterior ballistics, Test & evaluation, Computer vision, Image processing, Angle of attack

  17. Failure mechanism of resistance-spot-welded specimens impacted on base material by bullets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fan, Chunlei; Ma, Bohan; Chen, Danian; Wang, Huanran; Ma, Dongfang

    2018-01-01

    The tests of bullet impact on the base material (BM) of a simple specimen with a single resistance-spot-welded (RSW) nugget of TRIP800 steel are performed to investigate the response of the RSW specimen to the ballistic debris impact on the RSW specimen. A one-stage gas gun is used to fire the bullets while a laser velocity interferometer system for any reflector (VISAR) is used to measure the velocity histories of the free surfaces of the RSW specimen. The recovered RSW specimens are examined with the three-dimensional super depth digital microscope (SDDM) and the scanning electro microscope (SEM). For the tests of small multiple-bullet impact, it is revealed that the wave train of the VISAR measured results and the detachment of the base material interfaces in the recovered RSW specimens are directly related to the reflection and refraction of the curved stress waves incoming to the interfaces and the free surfaces in the RSW specimens. The detachment of BM interfaces can lead to the impact failure of the RSW joints for the larger multiple-bullet impact at higher velocity, the mechanism of which is different from the case for normal incidence (spalling). For the tests of single large bullet impact, it is brought to light experimentally that the plastic strain concentration at the "notch tip" spurs either the crack near the RSW joint or the split of the nugget. The numerical simulation shows up the process of splitting the nugget: a crack initiates at the "notch tip", propagates across the nugget interface and splits the nugget into two parts. It is indicated that the interaction between the stress waves and many interfaces/free surfaces in the RSW specimen under ballistic impact causes variable local stress triaxialities and stress Lode angles, which affects the deformation and fracture mechanism of the RSW specimen including stretching and shearing failure. It is shown that the impact failure of the RSW joints is a mixture of brittle fracture and ductile

  18. A model for beta skin dose estimation due to the use of a necklace with uranium depleted bullets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lavalle Heibron, P.H.; Pérez Guerrero, J.S.; Oliveira, J.F. de

    2015-01-01

    Depleted uranium bullets were use as munitions during the Kuwait – Iraq war and the International Atomic Energy Agency sampling expert’s team found fragments in the environment when the war was over. Consequently, there is a possibility that members of the public, especially children, collects DU fragments and use it, for example, to make a necklace. This paper estimates the beta skin dose to a child that uses a necklace made with a depleted uranium bullet. The theoretical model for dose estimation is based on Loevinguer’s equation with a correction factor adjusted for the maximum beta energy in the range between 0.1 and 2.5 MeV calculated taking into account the International Atomic Energy Agency expected doses rates in air at one meter distance of a point source of 37 GBq, function of the maximum beta energy. The dose rate estimated by this work due to the child use of a necklace with one depleted uranium bullet of 300 g was in good agreement with other results founded in literature. (authors)

  19. Two bullets to the head and an early winter: fate permits Kutuzov to defeat Napoleon at Moscow.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kushchayev, Sergiy V; Belykh, Evgenii; Fishchenko, Yakiv; Salei, Aliaksei; Teytelboym, Oleg M; Shabaturov, Leonid; Cruse, Mark; Preul, Mark C

    2015-07-01

    General Mikhail Kutuzov (circa 1745-1813) brilliantly repelled Napoleon's invasion of Russia. Honored as a national hero and a savior of Russia, Kutuzov has a unique medical story. He was shot in the head twice while fighting the Turks (1774 and 1788) and survived the serious injuries seemingly against all odds. The first bullet "ran through the head from one temple to the other behind both eyes." The second bullet entered the cheek, destroyed upper teeth, traveled through the head, and exited the occiput. Massot, a French surgeon with the Russian army, wrote after treating Kutuzov's seemingly two mortal wounds: "It must be believed that fate appoints Kutuzov to something great, because he was still alive after two injuries, a death sentence by all the rules of medical science." Aided by Massot's expert surgical technique, Kutuzov lived to become intimately engaged in events that altered world history. His health did, however, suffer significant effects due to the bullet wounds. In 1812, as Napoleon's Grande Armée approached, Kutuzov realized he could not confront Napoleon and he strategically retreated from Moscow, submitting the French to the harsh winter and Russian cavalry. Napoleon's devastated army retreated to Paris, and Kutuzov became the personification of Russian spirit and character. Kutuzov's survival of two nearly mortal head wounds created the legends, additional mystery, and drama surrounding him, not the least astonishing of which was the skilled neurosurgical care that probably saved his life.

  20. Distributed radar network for real-time tracking of bullet trajectory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yimin; Li, Xin; Jin, Yuanwei; Amin, Moeness G.; Eydgahi, Ali

    2009-05-01

    Gunshot detection, sniper localization, and bullet trajectory prediction are of significant importance in military and homeland security applications. While the majority of existing work is based on acoustic and electro-optical sensors, this paper develops a framework of networked radar systems that uses distributed radar sensor networks to achieve the aforementioned objectives. The use of radio frequency radar systems allows the achievement of subtime- of-flight tracking response, enabling to response before the bullet reaches its target and, as such, effectively leading to the reduction of injuries and casualties in military and homeland security operations. The focus of this paper is to examine the MIMO radar concept with concurrent transmission of low-correlation waveforms from multiple radar sets to ensure wide surveillance coverage and maintain a high waveform repetition frequency for long coherent time interval required to achieve return signal concentration.

  1. Atypical gunshot wound: Bullet trajectory analyzed by computed tomography

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tae Ro

    2015-01-01

    Conclusion: If an abnormal trajectory is maintained, it is possible for a bullet to traverse half the length of the body without the patient realizing it. Accurate CT analysis and quick decisions in surgical and medical management are critical takeaways to provide quality care to patients with these injuries.

  2. Structure and Stability of GeAun, n = 1-10 clusters: A Density Functional Study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Priyanka,; Dharamvir, Keya; Sharma, Hitesh

    2011-01-01

    The structures of Germanium doped gold clusters GeAu n (n = 1-10) have been investigated using ab initio calculations based on density functional theory (DFT). We have obtained ground state geometries of GeAu n clusters and have it compared with Silicon doped gold clusters and pure gold clusters. The ground state geometries of the GeAu n clusters show patterns similar to silicon doped gold clusters except for n = 5, 6 and 9. The introduction of germanium atom increases the binding energy of gold clusters. The binding energy per atom of germanium doped cluster is smaller than the corresponding silicon doped gold cluster. The HUMO-LOMO gap for Au n Ge clusters have been found to vary between 0.46 eV-2.09 eV. The mullikan charge analysis indicates that charge of order of 0.1e always transfers from germanium atom to gold atom.

  3. Bullet embolism of pulmonary artery: a case report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mauricio Gustavo Ieiri Yamanari

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available The authors report the case of a patient victim of gunshots, with a very rare complication: venous bullet embolism from the left external iliac vein to the lingular segment of the left pulmonary artery. Diagnosis is made with whole-body radiography or computed tomography. Digital angiography is reserved for supplementary diagnosis or to be used as a therapeutic procedure.

  4. Bullet embolism of pulmonary artery: a case report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yamanari, Mauricio Gustavo Ieiri; Mansur, Maria Clara Dias; Kay, Fernando Uliana; Silverio, Paulo Rogerio Barboza; Jayanthi, Shri Krishna; Funari, Marcelo Buarque de Gusmao

    2014-01-01

    The authors report the case of a patient victim of gunshots, with a very rare complication: venous bullet embolism from the left external iliac vein to the lingular segment of the left pulmonary artery. Diagnosis is made with whole-body radiography or computed tomography. Digital angiography is reserved for supplementary diagnosis or to be used as a therapeutic procedure. (author)

  5. Bullet Points, New Writing, and the Marketization of Public Discourse

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    van Leeuwen, Theo; Djonov, Emilia

    2014-01-01

    Bullet lists epitomize both new writing practices, which are promoted through ubiquitous software such as Microsoft's PowerPoint, and the marketization of public discourse. The argument is illustrated with an analysis of the recontextualization of the Australian Treasurer's Budget speech...

  6. Modified Johnson–Cook Model-based Numerical Simulation of Small Arms Bullets Penetration in the Aluminum Alloy Plates

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. Shash

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we simulated and studied the penetration process of 7,62 x 63 mm bullets "NATO Ball" (with a soft lead core and 7.62 x 63 mm ones «APM2» (with hard steel core in three kinds of aluminum plates, namely AA5083- H116, AA6082-T4, and AA7075-T6 with three different thicknesses of 10 mm, 20 mm, and 30 mm. The impact velocity was 830 m / s in all tests. Based on the test results and numerical calculations, all plates and a bullet were modeled as the deformable ones with modified constitutive Johnson-Cook relationship and Cockcroft-Latham fracture criterion. Then they were used in modeling by three-dimensional nonlinear finite element in Ansys Ls-Dyna package. The influence of the finite element size in the finite element model on the length and results of calculations has been investigated as well.The main calculation results, we have received, include the residual bullet velocity and the residual kinetic energy of the bullet after drilling a hole in the plate and plate failure mechanism for each type and thickness of the plate with two types of bullets. We have noticed that the residual velocities of the bullets for small thicknesses of aluminum alloys (up to 10 mm have relatively equal values upon penetration of the bullets "NATO Ball" and «APM2» (a bit more, as well as the calculation-obtained failure mechanisms are adequate to experimental. In addition, resistance of AA7075-T651 aluminum alloy to penetration is higher than that of AA5083-H116 and AA6082-T4 ones.It should also be noted that the accuracy of the results depends mainly on the size of the grid elements. The more is the number of elements, the higher is the accuracy of the results, but the longer is the solution time. Therefore, we advice to use the finite element size of 0.2 mm, at most, to obtain the highly accurate results that are adequate to the experimental results.

  7. Investigation of effective forensic cleaning methods for bullet and cartridge case samples

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shuherk, Cassie Marie

    Bullet and cartridge case evidence may potentially link weapons and crimes through the comparison of toolmark patterns. This analysis relies on the clarity of the toolmarks and the ability of the examiner to identify patterns on the evidence. These patterns may be distorted by debris such as soil, blood, cyanoacrylate, and construction materials. Despite the potential importance of bullet and cartridge case evidence, few investigations of proper cleaning methods have been conducted. The present study was designed to examine the effects of various cleaning solutions and application methods on copper and brass bullets and cartridge cases. Additionally, this research investigated the efficacy of these cleaning protocols on the common evidence contaminants blood and cyanoacrylate. No cleaning method was found to be universally effective on both contaminant types and nondestructive to the metal surface. Ultrasonication was the most efficient application method employed when used in conjunction with an appropriate cleaning solution. Acetone proved to be safe and successful at removing heavy cyanoacrylate deposits from brass cartridge cases without damaging the metal. Although sulfuric acid removed most of the cyanoacrylate from the brass cartridge case, ultrasonication of the fumed cartridge cases in sulfuric acid caused the nickel-plated primer caps to turn black. Additionally, etching occurred when sulfuric acid was allowed to dry on the cartridge case surface. Citric acid, salt-flour-vinegar paste, TergazymeRTM, and water did not effectively remove the cyanoacrylate from the cartridge cases, but the solutions were safe to use on the brass and sometimes resulted in a shinier surface. Regardless of the cleaning method employed, the bloodstained bullets retained most or all of the underlying brown tarnish. Ultrasonication with sulfuric acid was successful at removing some blood-initiated tarnishing; however, the removal of residues was not complete, making it difficult

  8. Lead bullet fragments in venison from rifle-killed deer: potential for human dietary exposure.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    W Grainger Hunt

    Full Text Available Human consumers of wildlife killed with lead ammunition may be exposed to health risks associated with lead ingestion. This hypothesis is based on published studies showing elevated blood lead concentrations in subsistence hunter populations, retention of ammunition residues in the tissues of hunter-killed animals, and systemic, cognitive, and behavioral disorders associated with human lead body burdens once considered safe. Our objective was to determine the incidence and bioavailability of lead bullet fragments in hunter-killed venison, a widely-eaten food among hunters and their families. We radiographed 30 eviscerated carcasses of White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus shot by hunters with standard lead-core, copper-jacketed bullets under normal hunting conditions. All carcasses showed metal fragments (geometric mean = 136 fragments, range = 15-409 and widespread fragment dispersion. We took each carcass to a separate meat processor and fluoroscopically scanned the resulting meat packages; fluoroscopy revealed metal fragments in the ground meat packages of 24 (80% of the 30 deer; 32% of 234 ground meat packages contained at least one fragment. Fragments were identified as lead by ICP in 93% of 27 samples. Isotope ratios of lead in meat matched the ratios of bullets, and differed from background lead in bone. We fed fragment-containing venison to four pigs to test bioavailability; four controls received venison without fragments from the same deer. Mean blood lead concentrations in pigs peaked at 2.29 microg/dL (maximum 3.8 microg/dL 2 days following ingestion of fragment-containing venison, significantly higher than the 0.63 microg/dL averaged by controls. We conclude that people risk exposure to bioavailable lead from bullet fragments when they eat venison from deer killed with standard lead-based rifle bullets and processed under normal procedures. At risk in the U.S. are some ten million hunters, their families, and low

  9. Failure mechanism of resistance-spot-welded specimens impacted on base material by bullets

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chunlei Fan

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The tests of bullet impact on the base material (BM of a simple specimen with a single resistance-spot-welded (RSW nugget of TRIP800 steel are performed to investigate the response of the RSW specimen to the ballistic debris impact on the RSW specimen. A one-stage gas gun is used to fire the bullets while a laser velocity interferometer system for any reflector (VISAR is used to measure the velocity histories of the free surfaces of the RSW specimen. The recovered RSW specimens are examined with the three-dimensional super depth digital microscope (SDDM and the scanning electro microscope (SEM. For the tests of small multiple-bullet impact, it is revealed that the wave train of the VISAR measured results and the detachment of the base material interfaces in the recovered RSW specimens are directly related to the reflection and refraction of the curved stress waves incoming to the interfaces and the free surfaces in the RSW specimens. The detachment of BM interfaces can lead to the impact failure of the RSW joints for the larger multiple-bullet impact at higher velocity, the mechanism of which is different from the case for normal incidence (spalling. For the tests of single large bullet impact, it is brought to light experimentally that the plastic strain concentration at the “notch tip” spurs either the crack near the RSW joint or the split of the nugget. The numerical simulation shows up the process of splitting the nugget: a crack initiates at the “notch tip”, propagates across the nugget interface and splits the nugget into two parts. It is indicated that the interaction between the stress waves and many interfaces/free surfaces in the RSW specimen under ballistic impact causes variable local stress triaxialities and stress Lode angles, which affects the deformation and fracture mechanism of the RSW specimen including stretching and shearing failure. It is shown that the impact failure of the RSW joints is a mixture of brittle

  10. Confluence or independence of microwave plasma bullets in atmospheric argon plasma jet plumes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Ping; Chen, Zhaoquan; Mu, Haibao; Xu, Guimin; Yao, Congwei; Sun, Anbang; Zhou, Yuming; Zhang, Guanjun

    2018-03-01

    Plasma bullet is the formation and propagation of a guided ionization wave (streamer), normally generated in atmospheric pressure plasma jet (APPJ). In most cases, only an ionization front produces in a dielectric tube. The present study shows that two or three ionization fronts can be generated in a single quartz tube by using a microwave coaxial resonator. The argon APPJ plumes with a maximum length of 170 mm can be driven by continuous microwaves or microwave pulses. When the input power is higher than 90 W, two or three ionization fronts propagate independently at first; thereafter, they confluence to form a central plasma jet plume. On the other hand, the plasma bullets move independently as the lower input power is applied. For pulsed microwave discharges, the discharge images captured by a fast camera show the ionization process in detail. Another interesting finding is that the strongest lightening plasma jet plumes always appear at the shrinking phase. Both the discharge images and electromagnetic simulations suggest that the confluence or independent propagation of plasma bullets is resonantly excited by the local enhanced electric fields, in terms of wave modes of traveling surface plasmon polaritons.

  11. Automatic identification of bullet signatures based on consecutive matching striae (CMS) criteria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chu, Wei; Thompson, Robert M; Song, John; Vorburger, Theodore V

    2013-09-10

    The consecutive matching striae (CMS) numeric criteria for firearm and toolmark identifications have been widely accepted by forensic examiners, although there have been questions concerning its observer subjectivity and limited statistical support. In this paper, based on signal processing and extraction, a model for the automatic and objective counting of CMS is proposed. The position and shape information of the striae on the bullet land is represented by a feature profile, which is used for determining the CMS number automatically. Rapid counting of CMS number provides a basis for ballistics correlations with large databases and further statistical and probability analysis. Experimental results in this report using bullets fired from ten consecutively manufactured barrels support this developed model. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

  12. Dynamics diffusion behaviors of Pd small clusters on a Pd(111) surface

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, Fusheng; Hu, Wangyu; Deng, Huiqiu; He, Rensheng; Yang, Xiyuan; Lu, Kuilin; Deng, Lei; Luo, Wenhua

    2010-01-01

    Using molecular dynamics, nudged elastic band and modified analytic embedded atom methods, the self-diffusion dynamics properties of palladium atomic clusters up to seven atoms on the Pd (111) surface have been studied at temperatures ranging from 300 to 1000 K. The simulation time varies from 20 to 75 ns according to the cluster sizes and the temperature ranges. The heptamer and trimer are more stable than the other neighboring clusters. The diffusion coefficients of the clusters are derived from the mean square displacement of the cluster's mass-center, and the diffusion prefactors D 0 and activation energies E a are derived from the Arrhenius relation. The activation energy of the clusters increases with the increasing atom number in the clusters, especially for Pd 6 to Pd 7 . The analysis of trajectories shows the noncompact clusters diffuse by the local diffusion mechanism but the compact clusters diffuse mainly by the whole gliding mechanism, and some static energy barriers of the diffusion modes are calculated. From Pd 2 to Pd 6 , the prefactors are in the range of the standard value 10 −3  cm 2  s −1 , and the prefactor of Pd 7 cluster is 2 orders of magnitude greater than that of the single Pd adatom because of a large number of nonequivalent diffusion processes. The heptamer can be the nucleus in the room temperature range according to nucleation theory

  13. Science Fair Projects. LC Science Tracer Bullet. TB 07-6

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howland, Joyce, Comp.

    2007-01-01

    Selected sources in this bibliography provide guidance to students, parents, and teachers throughout the process of planning, developing, implementing and competing in science fair activities. Sources range in suitability from elementary to high school levels. This guide updates "Library of Congress Science Tracer Bullet" 01-4. More specialized…

  14. Evaporation of tetramers in Sb4n clusters and conditions for the formation of Sb2n+1 clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rayane, D.; Tribollet, B.; Broyer, M.; Melinon, P.; Cabaud, B.; Hoareau, A.

    1989-01-01

    Antimony clusters are produced by the inert gas condensation technique. They are found to be built from Sb 4 units. The fragmentation by evaporation of Sb 4 units is studied as a function of the excess energy in the cluster. By this way the binding energy of the Sb 4 units in the cluster is found to be about 1.5 eV, well below the binding energy of a Sb atom in the bulk and in Sb 4 (≅3 eV). The evolution of ionization potentials of Sb 4n clusters confirms that their structure is probably non metallic. Finally the possible metastable character of this Sb 4n structure is discussed. (orig.)

  15. A Bullet Entered through the Open Mouth and Ended Up in the Parapharyngeal Space and Skull Base

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Saileswar Goswami

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Shot from a revolver from a close range, a bullet pierced the chest of a policeman and entered through the open mouth of a young male person standing behind. The entry wound was found in the cheek mucosa adjacent to the left lower third molar. After hitting and fracturing the body and the ramus of the mandible, the bullet was deflected and was finally lodged in the parapharyngeal space and skull base, anterolateral to the transverse process of the atlas. The great vessels of the neck were not injured. The patient’s condition was very critical but his life could be saved. The bullet was approached through a modified Blair’s incision and was found to be lying over the carotid sheath. It was removed safely and the patient recovered completely.

  16. Rate constants and temperature effects for reactions of Cl2sm-bullet- with unsaturated alcohols and hydrocarbons in aqueous and acetonitrile/water solutions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Padmaja, S.; Neta, P.; Huie, R.E.

    1992-01-01

    Absolute rate constants for reactions of the dichlorine radical anion, Cl 2 sm-bullet- , with unsaturated alcohols and hydrocarbons have been measured at various temperatures. The alcohol reactions were measured in aqueous solutions and the hydrocarbon reactions in 1:1 aqueous acetonitirle (ACN) solutions. The rate constants for two alcohols and one hydrocarbon were also examined as a function of solvent composition. The room temperature rate constants varied between 10 6 and 10 9 M -1 s -1 . The pre-exponential factors, A, were about (1-5) x 10 9 M -1 s -1 for the alcohols in aqueous solutions and about (0.1-1) x 10 9 M -1 s -1 for the hydrocarbons in aqueous ACN solutions. The activation energies, E a , varied considerably, between 4 and 12 kJ mol -1 for the alcohols and between 2 and 8 kJ mol -1 for the hydrocarbons. The rate constants, k 298 , decrease with increasing ionization potential (IP) of the unsaturated compound, in agreement with an electrophilic addition mechanism. The activation energies for the unsaturated alcohols decrease when the IP decreases from 9.7 to 9.1 eV but appear to level off at lower IP. Most alkenes studied had IP a . Upon addition of ACN to the aqueous solution, the values of log k 298 decreased linearly by more than 1 order of magnitude with increasing ACN mole fraction. This decrease appears to result from a combination of changes in the activation energy and in the pre-exponential factor. The reason for these changes may lie in changes in the solvation shell of the Cl 2 sm-bullet- radical, which will affect the A factor, in combination with changes in solvation of Cl - , which will affect the energetics of the reactions as well. 20 refs., 7 figs., 6 tabs

  17. Muzzle-loading weapons discharging spherical lead bullets: two case studies and experimental simulation using a skin-soap composite model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Große Perdekamp, Markus; Braunwarth, Roland; Kromeier, Jan; Nadjem, Hadi; Pollak, Stefan; Thierauf, Annette

    2013-07-01

    In current forensic practice, fatal injuries from black powder guns are rare events. In contact and close-range shots, the intensity of GSR deposition (soot, powder particles) is much greater than that in shots with smokeless powder ammunition. The same applies to any burning effects from the combustion gases. Besides, a wad of felt interposed between the propellant and the lead bullet may enter the wound channel. Apart from these findings seen in close-range shots, another characteristic feature results from the mostly spherical shape of the missiles causing maximum tissue damage at the entrance site. Two fatal injuries inflicted with muzzle-loading weapons are reported. In the first case, suicide was committed with a cal. 11.6 mm miniature cannon by firing a contact shot to the back of the neck. In test shots using black powder (1 and 2 g) as propellant, the mean bullet velocity measured 1 m away from the weapon was 87.11 and 146.85 m/s, respectively, corresponding to a kinetic energy of 32.49 and 92.95 J, respectively. Contact test shots to composite models consisting of ballistic soap covered by pig skin at the entrance site were evaluated by CT and revealed cone-like cavitations along the bullet path as known from spherical missiles and penetration depths up to 25 cm. The second case presented deals with a homicidal close-range shot discharged from a muzzle-loading percussion pistol cal. .44. The skin around the entrance site (root of the nose) was densely covered with blackish soot and powder particles, whereas the eyebrows and eyelashes showed singeing of the hairs. The flattened bullet and the wad had got stuck under the scalp of the occipital region. In both cases, there was a disproportionally large zone of tissue destruction in the initial parts of the wound tracks.

  18. Implications for wildlife and humans of dietary exposure to lead from fragments of lead rifle bullets in deer shot in the UK

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knott, Jeff; Gilbert, Jo; Hoccom, David G.; Green, Rhys E.

    2010-01-01

    Lead poisoning caused by ingested spent lead shotgun pellets has long been known to be a cause of unnecessary mortality in waterfowl and has led to legislation limiting its use in many countries. Recent evidence has shown that the problem extends to terrestrial ecosystems and to fragmented rifle bullets eaten by scavengers as well as shotgun pellets. Dietary exposure of human consumers to lead from spent ammunition in game meat also poses potential risks to human health. To assess the degree of fragmentation of lead bullets used to kill wild deer, twelve deer were shot in the thorax using copper-jacketed lead-cored bullets, as part of planned deer management operations. The thoracic region of the eviscerated carcasses and the abdominal viscera of each deer were X-rayed. An average of 356 metal fragments was visible on radiographs of the carcass and 180 fragments in the viscera. The weight of fragments was estimated by reference to an X-rayed scale of fragments of known weight. The average total weight of metal fragments, likely to be mostly lead, was estimated to be 1.2 g for the carcass and 0.2 g for the viscera. The total estimated weight of fragments in the entire carcass was estimated to be 17% of the weight of the bullet. Most fragments were small in size, with those in the viscera being smaller than those in the carcass. Metal fragments in the viscera were sufficiently small that at least 80% of the metallic bullet-derived lead in the viscera would be expected to be ingested by scavenging birds, such as buzzards and eagles, which feed on them.

  19. Implications for wildlife and humans of dietary exposure to lead from fragments of lead rifle bullets in deer shot in the UK

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Knott, Jeff, E-mail: jeff.knott@rspb.org.uk [Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL (United Kingdom); Gilbert, Jo; Hoccom, David G. [Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL (United Kingdom); Green, Rhys E. [Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL (United Kingdom); Conservation Science Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ (United Kingdom)

    2010-12-01

    Lead poisoning caused by ingested spent lead shotgun pellets has long been known to be a cause of unnecessary mortality in waterfowl and has led to legislation limiting its use in many countries. Recent evidence has shown that the problem extends to terrestrial ecosystems and to fragmented rifle bullets eaten by scavengers as well as shotgun pellets. Dietary exposure of human consumers to lead from spent ammunition in game meat also poses potential risks to human health. To assess the degree of fragmentation of lead bullets used to kill wild deer, twelve deer were shot in the thorax using copper-jacketed lead-cored bullets, as part of planned deer management operations. The thoracic region of the eviscerated carcasses and the abdominal viscera of each deer were X-rayed. An average of 356 metal fragments was visible on radiographs of the carcass and 180 fragments in the viscera. The weight of fragments was estimated by reference to an X-rayed scale of fragments of known weight. The average total weight of metal fragments, likely to be mostly lead, was estimated to be 1.2 g for the carcass and 0.2 g for the viscera. The total estimated weight of fragments in the entire carcass was estimated to be 17% of the weight of the bullet. Most fragments were small in size, with those in the viscera being smaller than those in the carcass. Metal fragments in the viscera were sufficiently small that at least 80% of the metallic bullet-derived lead in the viscera would be expected to be ingested by scavenging birds, such as buzzards and eagles, which feed on them.

  20. Hydrodynamics of back spatter by blunt bullet gunshot with a link to bloodstain pattern analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Comiskey, P. M.; Yarin, A. L.; Attinger, D.

    2017-07-01

    A theoretical model describing the blood spatter pattern resulting from a blunt bullet gunshot is proposed. The predictions are compared to experimental data acquired in the present work. This hydrodynamic problem belongs to the class of the impact hydrodynamics with the pressure impulse generating the blood flow. At the free surface, the latter is directed outwards and accelerated toward the surrounding air. As a result, the Rayleigh-Taylor instability of the flow of blood occurs, which is responsible for the formation of blood drops of different sizes and initial velocities. Thus, the initial diameter, velocity, and acceleration of the atomized blood drops can be determined. Then, the equations of motion are solved, describing drop trajectories in air accounting for gravity, and air drag. Also considered are the drop-drop interactions through air, which diminish air drag on the subsequent drops. Accordingly, deposition of two-phase (blood-drop and air) jets on a vertical cardstock sheet located between the shooter and the target (and perforated by the bullet) is predicted and compared with experimental data. The experimental data were acquired with a porous polyurethane foam sheet target impregnated with swine blood, and the blood drops were collected on a vertical cardstock sheet which was perforated by the blunt bullet. The highly porous target possesses a low hydraulic resistance and therefore resembles a pool of blood shot by a blunt bullet normally to its free surface. The back spatter pattern was predicted numerically and compared to the experimental data for the number of drops, their area, the total stain area, and the final impact angle as functions of radial location from the bullet hole in the cardstock sheet (the collection screen). Comparisons of the predicted results with the experimental data revealed satisfactory agreement. The predictions also allow one to find the impact Weber number on the collection screen, which is necessary to predict stain

  1. Atypical gunshot injury to the right side of the face with the bullet lodged in the carotid sheath: a case report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ongom, Peter A; Kijjambu, Stephen C; Jombwe, Josephat

    2014-01-27

    Gunshot injuries of the head and neck from the AK-47 rifle (a common assault rifle, submachine gun type) are a significant contributor to morbidity and mortality among civilians in Sub-Saharan Africa. They may cause significant damage to the closely arranged structures in this region, and the bullet's trajectory can be very difficult to determine. We present an unusual case of gunshot injury with an atypical bullet entry wound, profound injury to the face, lodgment in the right carotid sheath, and 'wandering'; a first of its kind in East Africa. A 27-year-old African-Ugandan woman of Nilotic ethnicity was referred to the Accident and Emergency Department of a tertiary hospital in Uganda, having sustained complex injuries due to an inadvertent AK-47 rifle gunshot injury. The gunshot injury was to the right side of her face with a large ragged entry wound and no exit wound. Prior basic wound care and radiological imaging showed a comminuted fracture of her mandible with lodgment of the bullet in her neck, anterior to her sixth and seventh cervical vertebrae. Standard debridement of her wound was done. A computed tomography scan showed an apparent cephalad shift ('wandering') of the bullet, leaving it lying partially anterior to her fifth cervical vertebra as well as within her carotid sheath. Other injuries were to her facial and trigeminal nerves, and her middle ear. The 'wandering' bullet was successfully removed surgically. It had caused no damage to any part of her neck structure. AK-47 rifle bullet injuries may present with uncharacteristically large entry wounds and cause complex structural injuries at the area of impact. The consequent trajectory is difficult to predict making regional examination and radiological investigations essential in management. Bullets may be retained, leaving no exit wound. Securing the airway, controlling hemorrhage and identifying other injuries are the first vital steps. This case illustrates all these interventions and the

  2. Observations and Modeling of Merging Galaxy Clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Golovich, Nathan Ryan

    of two individual merging clusters. Each are largely bimodal mergers occurring in the plane of the sky. We build on the dynamical analyses of Dawson (2013b) and Ng et al. (2015) in order to constrain the merger speeds, timescales, and geometry for these two systems, which are among a gold sample earmarked for further follow up. Findings: MACS J1149.5+2223 has a previously unidentified southern subcluster involved in a major merger with the well-studied northern subcluster. We confirm the system to be among the most massive clusters known, and we study the dynamics of the merger. MACS J1149.5+2223 appears to be a more evolved system than the Bullet Cluster observed near apocenter. ZwCl 0008.8+5215 is a less massive but a bimodal system with two radio relics and a cool-core "bullet" analogous to the namesake of the Bullet Cluster. These two systems occupy different regions of merger phase space with the pericentric relative velocities of ˜2800 km s-1 and ˜1800 km s-1 for MACS J1149.5+2223 and ZwCl 0008.8+5215, respectively. The time since pericenter for the observed states are ˜1.2 Gyr and ˜0.8 Gyr, respectivel. In the ensemble analysis, we confirm that radio relic selection is an efficient trigger for the identification of major mergers. In particular, 28 of the 29 systems exhibit galaxy substructure aligned with the radio relics and the disturbed intra-cluster medium. Radio relics are typically aligned within 20° of the axis connecting the two galaxy subclusters. Furthermore, when radio relics are aligned with substructure, the line of sight velocity difference between the two subclusters is small compared with the infall velocity. This strongly implies radio relic selection is an efficient selector of systems merging in the plane of the sky. While many of the systems are complex with several simultaneous merging subclusters, these systems generally only contain one radio relic. Systems with double radio relics uniformly suggest major mergers with two dominant

  3. Terminal Performance of Lead Free Pistol Bullets in Ballistic Gelatin Using Retarding Force Analysis from High Speed Video

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-04-04

    acceleration can be calculated. The change in kinetic energy can also be computed. In the video, temporary and permanent cavities are also visible. In this...notable that the video method above also allows the energy deposited as a funtion of penetration depth to be computed, when velocity is expressed...deposit as a function of penetration depth. The approach in this study employs the energy lost by the bullet in the first 15 cm of penetration , E15

  4. Are Sb4n (n>1) clusters weakly interacting tetrahedra?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumar, V.

    1993-03-01

    The electronic and atomic structure of Sb 4 and Sb 8 clusters is studied using the ab-initio molecular dynamics method in the local density approximation. While for Sb 4 we obtain a regular tetrahedron to be about 2.0 eV lower in energy than a bent rhombus, for Sb 8 two structures, (1) two weakly interaction tetrahedra and (2) a bent rhombus interacting with a stretched tetrahedron, obtained from the simulated annealing lie only within about 0.1 eV indicating the importance of the bent rhombus structure for larger clusters. As compared to two isolated tetrahedra, the binding energy of Sb 8 is about 0.5 eV. Our results are thus in excellent agreement with the experimental data which show predominantly the abundance of tetramers above room temperature. (author). 18 refs, 5 figs, 1 tab

  5. Direct measuring of single-cycle mid-IR light bullets path length in LiF by the laser coloration method

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chekalin Sergey

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available A colour-centre structure formed in a LiF crystal under filamentation of a femtosecond mid-IR laser pulse with a power slightly exceeding the critical power for self-focusing has been experimentally and theoretically investigated. A single-cycle light bullet was recorded for the first time by observation of strictly periodic oscillations for the density of the color centers induced in an isotropic LiF crystal under filamentation of a laser beam with a wavelength tuned in the range from 2600 to 3900 nm, which is due to the periodic change in the light field amplitude in the light bullet formed under filamentation under propagation in dispersive medium. The light bullet path length was not more than one millimeter.

  6. Bullet Trap Feasibility Assessment and Implementation Plan. (Technology Identification).

    Science.gov (United States)

    1996-03-01

    paralisis of of lead objects or its peripherical nerves and, in compounds (parasiticides, some cases, death. dyes , mordants , polyvinyl- To a correct...impact of the projectiles. In addition, bullet traps reduce or eliminate safety problems caused by ricochets off natural or other materials on current...rubber granules canted back at a natural angle of repose. Underneath this large pile of rubber granules is a conveyor belt and support structure. Behind

  7. Clustering of germanium atoms in silica glass responsible for the 3.1 eV emission band studied by optical absorption and X-ray absorption fine structure analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yoshida, Tomoko; Muto, Shunsuke; Yuliati, Leny; Yoshida, Hisao; Inada, Yasuhiro

    2009-01-01

    Correlation between the 3.1 eV emission band and local atomic configuration was systematically examined for Ge + implanted silica glass by UV-vis optical absorption spectroscopy and X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) analysis. The 2.7 eV emission band, commonly observed in defective silica, was replaced by the sharp and intense 3.1 eV emission band for the Ge + fluence > 2 x 10 16 cm -2 , in which UV-vis absorption spectra suggested clustering of Ge atoms with the size ∼1 nm. XAFS spectroscopy indicated that the Ge atoms were under coordinated with oxygen atoms nearly at a neutral valence state on average. The present results are consistent with the previous ESR study but imply that the small Ge clusters rather than the O=Ge: complexes (point defects) are responsible for the 3.1 eV emission band.

  8. Explaining ICT Infrastructure and E-Commerce Uses and Benefits in Industrial Clusters-Evidence from a Biotech Cluster

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Scupola, Ada; Steinfield, Charles

    2006-01-01

    in an industrial cluster might utilize and derive benefit from a public, broadband ICT infrastructure, particularly in support of e-commerce applications. A case study of a successful biotech cluster in Denamrk and Sweden-The Medicon Valley-provides a preliminary test of these expectations. Distinctions in uses...... and benefits based upon firm size are considered. A key finding is that small firms that would not otherwise be expected to gain from global e-commerce can rely on the cluster "brand" to enable trade with unknown and distant partners.......The literature on Industrial Clusters has not focused heavely on the role of the ICT infrastructure, nor on the potentail implications of electronic commerce. In this paper, we examine the theoretical bases for bringing these research streams together, and develop expectations for how firms...

  9. Filamentation and light bullet formation dynamics in solid-state dielectric media with weak, moderate and strong anomalous group velocity dispersion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gražulevičiūtė, I; Garejev, N; Majus, D; Tamošauskas, G; A Dubietis; Jukna, V

    2016-01-01

    We present a series of measurements, which characterize filamentation dynamics of intense ultrashort laser pulses in the space–time domain, as captured by means of three-dimensional imaging technique in sapphire and fused silica, in the wavelength range of 1.45–2.25 μm, accessing the regimes of weak, moderate and strong anomalous group velocity dispersion (GVD). In the regime of weak anomalous GVD (at 1.45 μm), pulse splitting into two sub-pulses producing a pair of light bullets with spectrally shifted carrier frequencies in both nonlinear media is observed. In contrast, in the regimes of moderate (at 1.8 μm) and strong (at 2.25 μm) anomalous GVD we observe notably different transient dynamics, which however lead to the formation of a single self-compressed quasistationary light bullet with an universal spatiotemporal shape comprised of an extended ring-shaped periphery and a localized intense core that carries the self-compressed pulse. (paper)

  10. Filamentation and light bullet formation dynamics in solid-state dielectric media with weak, moderate and strong anomalous group velocity dispersion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gražulevičiūtė, I.; Garejev, N.; Majus, D.; Jukna, V.; Tamošauskas, G.; Dubietis, A.

    2016-02-01

    We present a series of measurements, which characterize filamentation dynamics of intense ultrashort laser pulses in the space-time domain, as captured by means of three-dimensional imaging technique in sapphire and fused silica, in the wavelength range of 1.45-2.25 μm, accessing the regimes of weak, moderate and strong anomalous group velocity dispersion (GVD). In the regime of weak anomalous GVD (at 1.45 μm), pulse splitting into two sub-pulses producing a pair of light bullets with spectrally shifted carrier frequencies in both nonlinear media is observed. In contrast, in the regimes of moderate (at 1.8 μm) and strong (at 2.25 μm) anomalous GVD we observe notably different transient dynamics, which however lead to the formation of a single self-compressed quasistationary light bullet with an universal spatiotemporal shape comprised of an extended ring-shaped periphery and a localized intense core that carries the self-compressed pulse.

  11. Generation and control of sound bullets with a nonlinear acoustic lens.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spadoni, Alessandro; Daraio, Chiara

    2010-04-20

    Acoustic lenses are employed in a variety of applications, from biomedical imaging and surgery to defense systems and damage detection in materials. Focused acoustic signals, for example, enable ultrasonic transducers to image the interior of the human body. Currently however the performance of acoustic devices is limited by their linear operational envelope, which implies relatively inaccurate focusing and low focal power. Here we show a dramatic focusing effect and the generation of compact acoustic pulses (sound bullets) in solid and fluid media, with energies orders of magnitude greater than previously achievable. This focusing is made possible by a tunable, nonlinear acoustic lens, which consists of ordered arrays of granular chains. The amplitude, size, and location of the sound bullets can be controlled by varying the static precompression of the chains. Theory and numerical simulations demonstrate the focusing effect, and photoelasticity experiments corroborate it. Our nonlinear lens permits a qualitatively new way of generating high-energy acoustic pulses, which may improve imaging capabilities through increased accuracy and signal-to-noise ratios and may lead to more effective nonintrusive scalpels, for example, for cancer treatment.

  12. Experimentally Studied Influence of the Bullet Head Shape on Dispersion Characteristics at Subsonic Airspeeds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. N. Ilukhin

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The article presents description and results of experiments on a ballistic track and subsonic wind tunnel. The subject of study is important an issue such as the assessment of the influence of the bullet head shape on the accuracy of shooting parameters at subsonic muzzle velocity. The article points to the features of examined precision of guided and unguided aircraft, refers to the main disturbing factors. In addition, it outlines the most well known ways to improve the flight precision of unguided munitions. The article presents the geometric parameters of bullets and their scale models used in the experiments. It describes the experimental facilities and the studies themselves. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of experimental air-gun firings. Results for different muzzle velocities of flight are compared. The paper notes an ambiguity in comparison of accuracy and head drag coefficient. The results are clearly aligned with the data purging in the little turbulent subsonic wind tunnel. The article describes in detail the use of the method for visualizing a structure of the flow for the delimitation of attached flow and estimation of stagnation zone. A revealed physical picture has comprehensive theoretical underpinning. The conclusions of the work also give a advices on selecting a bullet to have the best dispersion parameters.

  13. The nongravitational interactions of dark matter in colliding galaxy clusters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harvey, David; Massey, Richard; Kitching, Thomas; Taylor, Andy; Tittley, Eric

    2015-03-27

    Collisions between galaxy clusters provide a test of the nongravitational forces acting on dark matter. Dark matter's lack of deceleration in the "bullet cluster" collision constrained its self-interaction cross section σ(DM)/m dark matter) for long-ranged forces. Using the Chandra and Hubble Space Telescopes, we have now observed 72 collisions, including both major and minor mergers. Combining these measurements statistically, we detect the existence of dark mass at 7.6σ significance. The position of the dark mass has remained closely aligned within 5.8 ± 8.2 kiloparsecs of associated stars, implying a self-interaction cross section σ(DM)/m < 0.47 cm(2)/g (95% CL) and disfavoring some proposed extensions to the standard model. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  14. Novel approaches to pin cluster synchronization on complex dynamical networks in Lur'e forms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Ze; Park, Ju H.; Feng, Jianwen

    2018-04-01

    This paper investigates the cluster synchronization of complex dynamical networks consisted of identical or nonidentical Lur'e systems. Due to the special topology structure of the complex networks and the existence of stochastic perturbations, a kind of randomly occurring pinning controller is designed which not only synchronizes all Lur'e systems in the same cluster but also decreases the negative influence among different clusters. Firstly, based on an extended integral inequality, the convex combination theorem and S-procedure, the conditions for cluster synchronization of identical Lur'e networks are derived in a convex domain. Secondly, randomly occurring adaptive pinning controllers with two independent Bernoulli stochastic variables are designed and then sufficient conditions are obtained for the cluster synchronization on complex networks consisted of nonidentical Lur'e systems. In addition, suitable control gains for successful cluster synchronization of nonidentical Lur'e networks are acquired by designing some adaptive updating laws. Finally, we present two numerical examples to demonstrate the validity of the control scheme and the theoretical analysis.

  15. Clustering of commercial fish sauce products based on an e-panel technique

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mitsutoshi Nakano

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Fish sauce is a brownish liquid seasoning with a characteristic flavor that is produced in Asian countries and limited areas of Europe. The types of fish and shellfish and fermentation process used in its production depend on the region from which it derives. Variations in ingredients and fermentation procedures yield end products with different smells, tastes, and colors. For this data article, we employed an electronic panel (e-panel technique including an electronic nose (e-nose, electronic tongue (e-tongue, and electronic eye (e-eye, in which smell, taste, and color are evaluated by sensors instead of the human nose, tongue, and eye to avoid subjective error. The presented data comprise clustering of 46 commercially available fish sauce products based separate e-nose, e-tongue, and e-eye test results. Sensory intensity data from the e-nose, e-tongue, and e-eye were separately classified by cluster analysis and are shown in dendrograms. The hierarchical cluster analysis indicates major three groups on e-nose and e-tongue data, and major four groups on e-eye data.

  16. Direction, site and the muzzle target distance of bullet in the head and neck at close range as an indication of suicide or homicide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Suwanjutha, T

    1988-05-01

    Direction, site and muzzle target distance can indicate suicide or homicide. This conclusion can be drawn from autopsies of 57 cases of suicide and 68 cases of homicide by handgun fired at close range to the head and neck together with going to the crimescene in some cases. This study was carried out in Bangkok during the period from January 1983 to January 1986. In order to determine whether it was suicide or homicide, the path of the bullet, the site, the muzzle target distance must be considered. The angle of the bullet would be either elevated (from below upward), horizontal or an angle of depression (from above downward). For suicide, the direction of the bullet should be at an angle of elevation in the majority of cases. The position of the handgun in relation to the head in suicide was most often in tight contact and near contact. For homicide, the direction of the bullet should be horizontal in most cases. The bullet was at close range in the majority of the cases. There are 8 common sites for suicide and homicide and 10 different sites in the case of homicide which are at neck, left cheek, left aural region, lip, left occipital area orbit, chin, left eyebrow, submental and nose.

  17. A self-adherent, bullet-shaped microneedle patch for controlled transdermal delivery of insulin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seong, Keum-Yong; Seo, Min-Soo; Hwang, Dae Youn; O'Cearbhaill, Eoin D; Sreenan, Seamus; Karp, Jeffrey M; Yang, Seung Yun

    2017-11-10

    Proteins are important biologic therapeutics used for the treatment of various diseases. However, owing to low bioavailability and poor skin permeability, transdermal delivery of protein therapeutics poses a significant challenge. Here, we present a new approach for transdermal protein delivery using bullet-shaped double-layered microneedle (MN) arrays with water-swellable tips. This design enabled the MNs to mechanically interlock with soft tissues by selective distal swelling after skin insertion. Additionally, prolonged release of loaded proteins by passive diffusion through the swollen tips was obtained. The bullet-shaped MNs provided an optimal geometry for mechanical interlocking, thereby achieving significant adhesion strength (~1.6Ncm -2 ) with rat skin. By harnessing the MN's reversible swelling/deswelling property, insulin, a model protein drug, was loaded in the swellable tips using a mild drop/dry procedure. The insulin-loaded MN patch released 60% of insulin when immersed in saline over the course of 12h and approximately 70% of the released insulin appeared to have preserved structural integrity. An in vivo pilot study showed a prolonged release of insulin from swellable MN patches, leading to a gradual decrease in blood glucose levels. This self-adherent transdermal MN platform can be applied to a variety of protein drugs requiring sustained release kinetics. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. No Evidence for Multiple Stellar Populations in the Low-mass Galactic Globular Cluster E 3

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salinas, Ricardo; Strader, Jay

    2015-08-01

    Multiple stellar populations are a widespread phenomenon among Galactic globular clusters. Even though the origin of the enriched material from which new generations of stars are produced remains unclear, it is likely that self-enrichment will be feasible only in clusters massive enough to retain this enriched material. We searched for multiple populations in the low mass (M˜ 1.4× {10}4 {M}⊙ ) globular cluster E3, analyzing SOAR/Goodman multi-object spectroscopy centered on the blue cyanogen (CN) absorption features of 23 red giant branch stars. We find that the CN abundance does not present the typical bimodal behavior seen in clusters hosting multistellar populations, but rather a unimodal distribution that indicates the presence of a genuine single stellar population, or a level of enrichment much lower than in clusters that show evidence for two populations from high-resolution spectroscopy. E3 would be the first bona fide Galactic old globular cluster where no sign of self-enrichment is found. Based on observations obtained at the Southern Astrophysical Research (SOAR) Telescope, which is a joint project of the Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia, e Inovação (MCTI) da República Federativa do Brasil, the US National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC), and Michigan State University (MSU).

  19. Electron: Cluster interactions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Scheidemann, A.A.; Knight, W.D.

    1994-02-01

    Beam depletion spectroscopy has been used to measure absolute total inelastic electron-sodium cluster collision cross sections in the energy range from E ∼ 0.1 to E ∼ 6 eV. The investigation focused on the closed shell clusters Na 8 , Na 20 , Na 40 . The measured cross sections show an increase for the lowest collision energies where electron attachment is the primary scattering channel. The electron attachment cross section can be understood in terms of Langevin scattering, connecting this measurement with the polarizability of the cluster. For energies above the dissociation energy the measured electron-cluster cross section is energy independent, thus defining an electron-cluster interaction range. This interaction range increases with the cluster size

  20. Investigation about the influence of the mechanical properties of lead core and brass jacket of a NATO 7.62 mm ball bullet in numerical simulations of ballistic impacts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Scapin M.

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available In the present work a validated numerical approach has been used in order to build a robust and reliable FE model of the impact of a NATO 7.62 mm ball bullet, against an aluminium transmission shaft. The bullet is a full metal jacket type, with a lead alloy core and a brass jacket. Target shaft is made by an Al6061-T6 aluminium alloy. According to the soft core (lead alloy of the bullet, most effort has been spent in order to evaluate the effect of bullet materials mechanical properties on the numerical results. Numerical analyses, carried out using the non-linear dynamic finite element solver Abaqus∖Explicit 6.10, have been performed focusing on core and jacket material behaviour (target material, Al6061-T6, has been previously calibrated by the authors. Thus numerical analyses have been performed considering for the mechanical behaviour of the bullet both a simplified approach (as reported in literature and new material data (with strain rate effect obtained by means of experimental tests on the two materials (lead and brass with specimens cut directly from the bullet. Finally the results of the analyses have been compared with real experimental ballistic tests.

  1. Choosing the Number of Clusters in K-Means Clustering

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steinley, Douglas; Brusco, Michael J.

    2011-01-01

    Steinley (2007) provided a lower bound for the sum-of-squares error criterion function used in K-means clustering. In this article, on the basis of the lower bound, the authors propose a method to distinguish between 1 cluster (i.e., a single distribution) versus more than 1 cluster. Additionally, conditional on indicating there are multiple…

  2. [Predicting Incidence of Hepatitis E in Chinausing Fuzzy Time Series Based on Fuzzy C-Means Clustering Analysis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luo, Yi; Zhang, Tao; Li, Xiao-song

    2016-05-01

    To explore the application of fuzzy time series model based on fuzzy c-means clustering in forecasting monthly incidence of Hepatitis E in mainland China. Apredictive model (fuzzy time series method based on fuzzy c-means clustering) was developed using Hepatitis E incidence data in mainland China between January 2004 and July 2014. The incidence datafrom August 2014 to November 2014 were used to test the fitness of the predictive model. The forecasting results were compared with those resulted from traditional fuzzy time series models. The fuzzy time series model based on fuzzy c-means clustering had 0.001 1 mean squared error (MSE) of fitting and 6.977 5 x 10⁻⁴ MSE of forecasting, compared with 0.0017 and 0.0014 from the traditional forecasting model. The results indicate that the fuzzy time series model based on fuzzy c-means clustering has a better performance in forecasting incidence of Hepatitis E.

  3. Caffeine citrate - Is it a silver bullet in neonatology?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shrestha, Bikash; Jawa, Gaurav

    2017-10-01

    Caffeine citrate is one of the most prescribed drug in the present day NICU for apnea. Its efficacy, tolerability, wide therapeutic index and safety margin has made it the drug of choice among the methylxanthines. Its therapeutic uses in apnea of prematurity, mechanical ventilation, bronchopulmonary dysplasia has made it a "silver bullet" in neonatology. However, there are still controversies surrounding this drug. This review is aimed to update the reader about the basic pharmacology, current therapeutic uses, adverse effects, controversies as well as present and future research of caffeine. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  4. Learning game physics with Bullet Physics and OpenGL

    CERN Document Server

    Dickinson, Chris

    2013-01-01

    A comprehensive set of straight-forward, easy-to-follow tutorials in OpenGL and Bullet Physics that will teach you how modern game physics and 3D graphics work.If you're a beginner or intermediate programmer with a basic understanding of 3D mathematics, and you want a stronger foundation in 3D graphics and physics, then this book is perfect for you! You'll even learn some of the fundamental concepts in 3D mathematics and software design that lies beneath them both, discovering some techniques and tricks in graphics and physics that you can use in any game development project.

  5. The Remarkable Similarity of Massive Galaxy Clusters from z ~ 0 to z ~ 1.9

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McDonald, M.; Allen, S. W.; Bayliss, M.; Benson, B. A.; Bleem, L. E.; Brodwin, M.; Bulbul, E.; Carlstrom, J. E.; Forman, W. R.; Hlavacek-Larrondo, J.; Garmire, G. P.; Gaspari, M.; Gladders, M. D.; Mantz, A. B.; Murray, S. S.

    2017-06-28

    We present the results of a Chandra X-ray survey of the 8 most massive galaxy clusters at z>1.2 in the South Pole Telescope 2500 deg^2 survey. We combine this sample with previously-published Chandra observations of 49 massive X-ray-selected clusters at 01 and 90 SZ-selected clusters at 0.251.2 to constrain the evolution of the intracluster medium (ICM) over the past ~10 Gyr. We find that the bulk of the ICM has evolved self similarly over the full redshift range probed here, with the ICM density at r>0.2R500 scaling like E(z)^2. In the centers of clusters (r<0.1R500), we find significant deviations from self similarity (n_e ~ E(z)^{0.1+/-0.5}), consistent with no redshift dependence. When we isolate clusters with over-dense cores (i.e., cool cores), we find that the average over-density profile has not evolved with redshift -- that is, cool cores have not changed in size, density, or total mass over the past ~9-10 Gyr. We show that the evolving "cuspiness" of clusters in the X-ray, reported by several previous studies, can be understood in the context of a cool core with fixed properties embedded in a self similarly-evolving cluster. We find no measurable evolution in the X-ray morphology of massive clusters, seemingly in tension with the rapidly-rising (with redshift) rate of major mergers predicted by cosmological simulations. We show that these two results can be brought into agreement if we assume that the relaxation time after a merger is proportional to the crossing time, since the latter is proportional to H(z)^(-1).

  6. Photoelectron spectroscopy of B4O4-: Dual 3c-4e π hyperbonds and rhombic 4c-4e o-bond in boron oxide clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, Wen-Juan; Zhao, Li-Juan; Chen, Qiang; Ou, Ting; Xu, Hong-Guang; Zheng, Wei-Jun; Zhai, Hua-Jin; Li, Si-Dian

    2015-04-01

    Gas-phase anion photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) is combined with global structural searches and electronic structure calculations at the hybrid Becke 3-parameter exchange functional and Lee-Yang-Parr correlation functional (B3LYP) and single-point coupled-cluster with single, double, and perturbative triple excitations (CCSD(T)) levels to probe the structural and electronic properties and chemical bonding of the B4O40/- clusters. The measured PES spectra of B4O4- exhibit a major band with the adiabatic and vertical detachment energies (ADE and VDE) of 2.64 ± 0.10 and 2.81 ± 0.10 eV, respectively, as well as a weak peak with the ADE and VDE of 1.42 ± 0.08 and 1.48 ± 0.08 eV. The former band proves to correspond to the Y-shaped global minimum of Cs B4O4- (2A″), with the calculated ADE/VDE of 2.57/2.84 eV at the CCSD(T) level, whereas the weak band is associated with the second lowest-energy, rhombic isomer of D2h B4O4- (2B2g) with the predicted ADE/VDE of 1.43/1.49 eV. Both anion structures are planar, featuring a B atom or a B2O2 core bonded with terminal BO and/or BO2 groups. The same Y-shaped and rhombic structures are also located for the B4O4 neutral cluster, albeit with a reversed energy order. Bonding analyses reveal dual three-center four-electron (3c-4e) π hyperbonds in the Y-shaped B4O40/- clusters and a four-center four-electron (4c-4e) π bond, that is, the so-called o-bond in the rhombic B4O40/- clusters. This work is the first experimental study on a molecular system with an o-bond.

  7. Photoelectron spectroscopy of B4O4 (-): Dual 3c-4e π hyperbonds and rhombic 4c-4e o-bond in boron oxide clusters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, Wen-Juan; Zhao, Li-Juan; Chen, Qiang; Ou, Ting; Xu, Hong-Guang; Zheng, Wei-Jun; Zhai, Hua-Jin; Li, Si-Dian

    2015-04-07

    Gas-phase anion photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) is combined with global structural searches and electronic structure calculations at the hybrid Becke 3-parameter exchange functional and Lee-Yang-Parr correlation functional (B3LYP) and single-point coupled-cluster with single, double, and perturbative triple excitations (CCSD(T)) levels to probe the structural and electronic properties and chemical bonding of the B4O4 (0/-) clusters. The measured PES spectra of B4O4 (-) exhibit a major band with the adiabatic and vertical detachment energies (ADE and VDE) of 2.64 ± 0.10 and 2.81 ± 0.10 eV, respectively, as well as a weak peak with the ADE and VDE of 1.42 ± 0.08 and 1.48 ± 0.08 eV. The former band proves to correspond to the Y-shaped global minimum of Cs B4O4 (-) ((2)A″), with the calculated ADE/VDE of 2.57/2.84 eV at the CCSD(T) level, whereas the weak band is associated with the second lowest-energy, rhombic isomer of D2h B4O4 (-) ((2)B2g) with the predicted ADE/VDE of 1.43/1.49 eV. Both anion structures are planar, featuring a B atom or a B2O2 core bonded with terminal BO and/or BO2 groups. The same Y-shaped and rhombic structures are also located for the B4O4 neutral cluster, albeit with a reversed energy order. Bonding analyses reveal dual three-center four-electron (3c-4e) π hyperbonds in the Y-shaped B4O4 (0/-) clusters and a four-center four-electron (4c-4e) π bond, that is, the so-called o-bond in the rhombic B4O4 (0/-) clusters. This work is the first experimental study on a molecular system with an o-bond.

  8. The benefit of a tough skin: bullet holes, weathering and the preservation of heritage

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mol, Lisa; Gomez-Heras, M.; Brassey, C.; Green, O.; Blenkinsop, T.

    2017-02-01

    Projectile damage to building stone is a widespread phenomenon. Sites damaged 100 years ago during the First World War still see daily use, while in a more contemporary setting numerous reports show the damage to buildings in Babylon, Mosul and Palmyra. While research has been carried out on the long-term effects of conflict such as fire damage, little is known about the protracted damage sustained through the impact of bullets, shrapnel and other metal projectiles outside of the field of engineering focused on ceramics and metals. To investigate alterations to mineral structure caused by projectile damage, impacts were created in medium-grained, well-compacted, mesoporous sandstone samples using 0.22 calibre lead bullets shot at a distance of 20 m. Half these samples were treated with a surface consolidant (Wacker OH 100), to mimic natural cementation of the rock surface. These samples were then tested for changes to surface hardness and moisture movement during temperature cycles of 15-65°C. Petrographic thin section analysis was carried out to investigate the micro-scale deformation associated with high-speed impact. The results surprisingly show that stress build-up behind pre-existing cementation of the surface, as found in heritage sites that have been exposed to moisture and temperature fluctuations for longer periods of time, can be alleviated with a bullet impact. However, fracture networks and alteration of the mineral matrices still form a weak point within the structure, even at a relatively low impact calibre. This initial study illustrates the need for geomorphologists, geologists, engineers and heritage specialists to work collectively to gain further insights into the long-term impact of higher calibre armed warfare on heritage deterioration.

  9. Physicomathematical Simulation Analysis for Small Bullets

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. P. Margaris

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available A full six degrees of freedom (6-DOF flight dynamics model is proposed for the accurate prediction of short and long-range trajectories of small bullets via atmospheric flight to final impact point. The mathematical model is based on the full equations of motion set up in the no-roll body reference frame and is integrated numerically from given initial conditions at the firing site. The projectile maneuvering motion depends on the most significant force and moment variations, in addition to gravity and Magnus effect. The computational flight analysis takes into consideration the Mach number and total angle of attack effects by means of the variable aerodynamic coefficients. For the purposes of the present work, linear interpolation has been applied for aerodynamic coefficients from the official tabulated database. The developed computational method gives satisfactory agreement with published data of verified experiments and computational codes on atmospheric projectile trajectory analysis for various initial firing flight conditions.

  10. Three-dimensional Bessel light bullets in self-focusing Kerr media

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhong Weiping; Belic, Milivoj; Huang Tingwen

    2010-01-01

    We study three-dimensional (3D) Bessel light-bullet solutions of the nonlinear Schroedinger equation with a photonic lattice potential in the form of squared Bessel functions in polar coordinates, both analytically and numerically. Analytical solutions are obtained by the Hartree approximation, and numerical simulations are performed, to compare with the analytical solutions and to confirm the stability of localized solutions. The 3D spatial wave packets are built by the products of hyperbolic secant and Bessel functions. These solitons appear in different forms, such as 3D vortex solitons and multipole solitons.

  11. Potential hazard to human health from exposure to fragments of lead bullets and shot in the tissues of game animals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pain, Deborah J; Cromie, Ruth L; Newth, Julia; Brown, Martin J; Crutcher, Eric; Hardman, Pippa; Hurst, Louise; Mateo, Rafael; Meharg, Andrew A; Moran, Annette C; Raab, Andrea; Taggart, Mark A; Green, Rhys E

    2010-04-26

    Lead is highly toxic to animals. Humans eating game killed using lead ammunition generally avoid swallowing shot or bullets and dietary lead exposure from this source has been considered low. Recent evidence illustrates that lead bullets fragment on impact, leaving small lead particles widely distributed in game tissues. Our paper asks whether lead gunshot pellets also fragment upon impact, and whether lead derived from spent gunshot and bullets in the tissues of game animals could pose a threat to human health. Wild-shot gamebirds (6 species) obtained in the UK were X-rayed to determine the number of shot and shot fragments present, and cooked using typical methods. Shot were then removed to simulate realistic practice before consumption, and lead concentrations determined. Data from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate Statutory Surveillance Programme documenting lead levels in raw tissues of wild gamebirds and deer, without shot being removed, are also presented. Gamebirds containing > or =5 shot had high tissue lead concentrations, but some with fewer or no shot also had high lead concentrations, confirming X-ray results indicating that small lead fragments remain in the flesh of birds even when the shot exits the body. A high proportion of samples from both surveys had lead concentrations exceeding the European Union Maximum Level of 100 ppb w.w. (0.1 mg kg(-1) w.w.) for meat from bovine animals, sheep, pigs and poultry (no level is set for game meat), some by several orders of magnitude. High, but feasible, levels of consumption of some species could result in the current FAO/WHO Provisional Weekly Tolerable Intake of lead being exceeded. The potential health hazard from lead ingested in the meat of game animals may be larger than previous risk assessments indicated, especially for vulnerable groups, such as children, and those consuming large amounts of game.

  12. Potential Hazard to Human Health from Exposure to Fragments of Lead Bullets and Shot in the Tissues of Game Animals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pain, Deborah J.; Cromie, Ruth L.; Newth, Julia; Brown, Martin J.; Crutcher, Eric; Hardman, Pippa; Hurst, Louise; Mateo, Rafael; Meharg, Andrew A.; Moran, Annette C.; Raab, Andrea; Taggart, Mark A.; Green, Rhys E.

    2010-01-01

    Background Lead is highly toxic to animals. Humans eating game killed using lead ammunition generally avoid swallowing shot or bullets and dietary lead exposure from this source has been considered low. Recent evidence illustrates that lead bullets fragment on impact, leaving small lead particles widely distributed in game tissues. Our paper asks whether lead gunshot pellets also fragment upon impact, and whether lead derived from spent gunshot and bullets in the tissues of game animals could pose a threat to human health. Methodology/Principal Findings Wild-shot gamebirds (6 species) obtained in the UK were X-rayed to determine the number of shot and shot fragments present, and cooked using typical methods. Shot were then removed to simulate realistic practice before consumption, and lead concentrations determined. Data from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate Statutory Surveillance Programme documenting lead levels in raw tissues of wild gamebirds and deer, without shot being removed, are also presented. Gamebirds containing ≥5 shot had high tissue lead concentrations, but some with fewer or no shot also had high lead concentrations, confirming X-ray results indicating that small lead fragments remain in the flesh of birds even when the shot exits the body. A high proportion of samples from both surveys had lead concentrations exceeding the European Union Maximum Level of 100 ppb w.w. (0.1 mg kg−1 w.w.) for meat from bovine animals, sheep, pigs and poultry (no level is set for game meat), some by several orders of magnitude. High, but feasible, levels of consumption of some species could result in the current FAO/WHO Provisional Weekly Tolerable Intake of lead being exceeded. Conclusions/Significance The potential health hazard from lead ingested in the meat of game animals may be larger than previous risk assessments indicated, especially for vulnerable groups, such as children, and those consuming large amounts of game. PMID:20436670

  13. Bullet embolization to the external iliac artery after gunshot injury to the abdominal aorta: a case report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jaha Luan

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Introduction Abdominal vascular trauma is fairly common in modern civilian life and is a highly lethal injury. However, if the projectile is small enough, if its energy is diminished when passing through the tissue and if the arterial system is elastic enough, the entry wound into the artery may close without exsanguination and therefore may not be fatal. A projectile captured may even travel downstream until it is arrested by the smaller distal vasculature. The occurrence of this phenomenon is rare and was first described by Trimble in 1968. Case presentation Here we present a case of a 29-year-old Albanian man who, due to a gunshot injury to the back, suffered fracture of his twelfth thoracic and first lumbar vertebra, injury to the posterior wall of his abdominal aorta and then bullet embolism to his left external iliac artery. It is interesting that the signs of distal ischemia developed several hours after the exploratory surgery, raising the possibility that the bullet migrated in the interim or that there was a failure to recognize it during the exploratory surgery. Conclusion In all cases where there is a gunshot injury to the abdomen or chest without an exit wound and with no projectile in the area, there should be a high index of suspicion for possible bullet embolism, particularly in the presence of the distal ischemia.

  14. Photoelectron spectroscopy of B4O4−: Dual 3c-4e π hyperbonds and rhombic 4c-4e o-bond in boron oxide clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tian, Wen-Juan; Chen, Qiang; Ou, Ting; Li, Si-Dian; Zhao, Li-Juan; Xu, Hong-Guang; Zheng, Wei-Jun; Zhai, Hua-Jin

    2015-01-01

    Gas-phase anion photoelectron spectroscopy (PES) is combined with global structural searches and electronic structure calculations at the hybrid Becke 3-parameter exchange functional and Lee-Yang-Parr correlation functional (B3LYP) and single-point coupled-cluster with single, double, and perturbative triple excitations (CCSD(T)) levels to probe the structural and electronic properties and chemical bonding of the B 4 O 4 0/− clusters. The measured PES spectra of B 4 O 4 − exhibit a major band with the adiabatic and vertical detachment energies (ADE and VDE) of 2.64 ± 0.10 and 2.81 ± 0.10 eV, respectively, as well as a weak peak with the ADE and VDE of 1.42 ± 0.08 and 1.48 ± 0.08 eV. The former band proves to correspond to the Y-shaped global minimum of C s B 4 O 4 − ( 2 A″), with the calculated ADE/VDE of 2.57/2.84 eV at the CCSD(T) level, whereas the weak band is associated with the second lowest-energy, rhombic isomer of D 2h B 4 O 4 − ( 2 B 2g ) with the predicted ADE/VDE of 1.43/1.49 eV. Both anion structures are planar, featuring a B atom or a B 2 O 2 core bonded with terminal BO and/or BO 2 groups. The same Y-shaped and rhombic structures are also located for the B 4 O 4 neutral cluster, albeit with a reversed energy order. Bonding analyses reveal dual three-center four-electron (3c-4e) π hyperbonds in the Y-shaped B 4 O 4 0/− clusters and a four-center four-electron (4c-4e) π bond, that is, the so-called o-bond in the rhombic B 4 O 4 0/− clusters. This work is the first experimental study on a molecular system with an o-bond

  15. Hα star formation rates of z > 1 galaxy clusters in the IRAC shallow cluster survey

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zeimann, Gregory R.; Stanford, S. A.; Brodwin, Mark; Gonzalez, Anthony H.; Mancone, Conor; Snyder, Gregory F.; Stern, Daniel; Eisenhardt, Peter; Dey, Arjun; Moustakas, John

    2013-01-01

    We present Hubble Space Telescope near-IR spectroscopy for 18 galaxy clusters at 1.0 1.5 in the IRAC Shallow Cluster Survey. We use Wide Field Camera 3 grism data to spectroscopically identify Hα emitters in both the cores of galaxy clusters as well as in field galaxies. We find a large cluster-to-cluster scatter in the star formation rates within a projected radius of 500 kpc, and many of our clusters (∼60%) have significant levels of star formation within a projected radius of 200 kpc. A stacking analysis reveals that dust reddening in these star-forming galaxies is positively correlated with stellar mass and may be higher in the field than the cluster at a fixed stellar mass. This may indicate a lower amount of gas in star-forming cluster galaxies than in the field population. Also, Hα equivalent widths of star-forming galaxies in the cluster environment are still suppressed below the level of the field. This suppression is most significant for lower mass galaxies (log M * < 10.0 M ☉ ). We therefore conclude that environmental effects are still important at 1.0 1.5 for star-forming galaxies in galaxy clusters with log M * ≲ 10.0 M ☉ .

  16. Development of a biosensor protein bullet as a fluorescent method for fast detection of Escherichia coli in drinking water.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ignacio Gutiérrez-Del-Río

    Full Text Available Drinking water can be exposed to different biological contaminants from the source, through the pipelines, until reaching the final consumer or industry. Some of these are pathogenic bacteria and viruses which may cause important gastrointestinal or systemic diseases. The microbiological quality of drinking water relies mainly in monitoring three indicator bacteria of faecal origin, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis and Clostridium perfringens, which serve as early sentinels of potential health hazards for the population. Here we describe the analysis of three chimeric fluorescent protein bullets as biosensor candidates for fast detection of E. coli in drinking water. Two of the chimeric proteins (based on GFP-hadrurin and GFP-pb5 chimera proteins failed with respect to specificity and/or sensitivity, but the GFP-colS4 chimera protein was able to carry out specific detection of E. coli in drinking water samples in a procedure encompassing about 8 min for final result and this biosensor protein was able to detect in a linear way between 20 and 103 CFU of this bacterium. Below 20 CFU, the system cannot differentiate presence or absence of the target bacterium. The fluorescence in this biosensor system is provided by the GFP subunit of the chimeric protein, which, in the case of the better performing sensor bullet, GFP-colS4 chimera, is covalently bound to a flexible peptide bridge and to a bacteriocin binding specifically to E. coli cells. Once bound to the target bacteria, the excitation step with 395 nm LED light causes emission of fluorescence from the GFP domain, which is amplified in a photomultiplier tube, and finally this signal is converted into an output voltage which can be associated with a CFU value and these data distributed along mobile phone networks, for example. This method, and the portable fluorimeter which has been developed for it, may contribute to reduce the analysis time for detecting E. coli presence in drinking

  17. Development of a biosensor protein bullet as a fluorescent method for fast detection of Escherichia coli in drinking water.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gutiérrez-Del-Río, Ignacio; Marín, Laura; Fernández, Javier; Álvarez San Millán, María; Ferrero, Francisco Javier; Valledor, Marta; Campo, Juan Carlos; Cobián, Natalia; Méndez, Ignacio; Lombó, Felipe

    2018-01-01

    Drinking water can be exposed to different biological contaminants from the source, through the pipelines, until reaching the final consumer or industry. Some of these are pathogenic bacteria and viruses which may cause important gastrointestinal or systemic diseases. The microbiological quality of drinking water relies mainly in monitoring three indicator bacteria of faecal origin, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis and Clostridium perfringens, which serve as early sentinels of potential health hazards for the population. Here we describe the analysis of three chimeric fluorescent protein bullets as biosensor candidates for fast detection of E. coli in drinking water. Two of the chimeric proteins (based on GFP-hadrurin and GFP-pb5 chimera proteins) failed with respect to specificity and/or sensitivity, but the GFP-colS4 chimera protein was able to carry out specific detection of E. coli in drinking water samples in a procedure encompassing about 8 min for final result and this biosensor protein was able to detect in a linear way between 20 and 103 CFU of this bacterium. Below 20 CFU, the system cannot differentiate presence or absence of the target bacterium. The fluorescence in this biosensor system is provided by the GFP subunit of the chimeric protein, which, in the case of the better performing sensor bullet, GFP-colS4 chimera, is covalently bound to a flexible peptide bridge and to a bacteriocin binding specifically to E. coli cells. Once bound to the target bacteria, the excitation step with 395 nm LED light causes emission of fluorescence from the GFP domain, which is amplified in a photomultiplier tube, and finally this signal is converted into an output voltage which can be associated with a CFU value and these data distributed along mobile phone networks, for example. This method, and the portable fluorimeter which has been developed for it, may contribute to reduce the analysis time for detecting E. coli presence in drinking water.

  18. Low-energy electron collisions with metal clusters: Electron capture and cluster fragmentation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kresin, V.V.; Scheidemann, A.; Knight, W.D.

    1993-01-01

    The authors have carried out the first measurement of absolute cross sections for the interaction between electrons and size-resolved free metal clusters. Integral inelastic scattering cross sections have been determined for electron-Na n cluster collisions in the energy range from 0.1 eV to 30 eV. At energies ≤1 eV, cross sections increase with decreasing impact energies, while at higher energies they remain essentially constant. The dominant processes are electron attachment in the low-energy range, and collision-induced fragmentation at higher energies. The magnitude of electron capture cross sections can be quantitatively explained by the effect of the strong polarization field induced in the cluster by the incident electron. The cross sections are very large, reaching values of hundreds of angstrom 2 ; this is due to the highly polarizable nature of metal clusters. The inelastic interaction range for fragmentation collisions is also found to considerably exceed the cluster radius, again reflecting the long-range character of electron-cluster interactions. The important role played by the polarization interaction represents a bridge between the study of collision processes and the extensive research on cluster response properties. Furthermore, insight into the mechanisms of electron scattering is important for understanding production and detection of cluster ions in mass spectrometry and related processes

  19. General-Purpose Heat Source development: Safety Verification Test Program. Bullet/fragment test series

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    George, T.G.; Tate, R.E.; Axler, K.M.

    1985-05-01

    The radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG) that will provide power for space missions contains 18 General-Purpose Heat Source (GPHS) modules. Each module contains four /sup 238/PuO/sub 2/-fueled clads and generates 250 W/sub (t)/. Because a launch-pad or post-launch explosion is always possible, we need to determine the ability of GPHS fueled clads within a module to survive fragment impact. The bullet/fragment test series, part of the Safety Verification Test Plan, was designed to provide information on clad response to impact by a compact, high-energy, aluminum-alloy fragment and to establish a threshold value of fragment energy required to breach the iridium cladding. Test results show that a velocity of 555 m/s (1820 ft/s) with an 18-g bullet is at or near the threshold value of fragment velocity that will cause a clad breach. Results also show that an exothermic Ir/Al reaction occurs if aluminum and hot iridium are in contact, a contact that is possible and most damaging to the clad within a narrow velocity range. The observed reactions between the iridium and the aluminum were studied in the laboratory and are reported in the Appendix.

  20. THE ATACAMA COSMOLOGY TELESCOPE: PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF SUNYAEV-ZEL'DOVICH EFFECT CLUSTERS ON THE CELESTIAL EQUATOR ,

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Menanteau, Felipe; Hughes, John P.; Sifón, Cristóbal; Barrientos, L. Felipe; Dünner, Rolando; Infante, Leopoldo; Battaglia, Nicholas; Bond, J. Richard; Hajian, Amir; Hincks, Adam D.; Crichton, Devin; Gralla, Megan; Marriage, Tobias A.; Das, Sudeep; Devlin, Mark J.; Dicker, Simon; Hasselfield, Matthew; Hilton, Matt; Kosowsky, Arthur; Marsden, Danica

    2013-01-01

    We present the optical and X-ray properties of 68 galaxy clusters selected via the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect at 148 GHz by the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT). Our sample, from an area of 504 deg 2 centered on the celestial equator, is divided into two regions. The main region uses 270 deg 2 of the ACT survey that overlaps with the co-added ugriz imaging from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) over Stripe 82 plus additional near-infrared pointed observations with the Apache Point Observatory 3.5 m telescope. We confirm a total of 49 clusters to z ≈ 1.3, of which 22 (all at z > 0.55) are new discoveries. For the second region, the regular-depth SDSS imaging allows us to confirm 19 more clusters up to z ≈ 0.7, of which 10 systems are new. We present the optical richness, photometric redshifts, and separation between the SZ position and the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG). We find no significant offset between the cluster SZ centroid and BCG location and a weak correlation between optical richness and SZ-derived mass. We also present X-ray fluxes and luminosities from the ROSAT All Sky Survey which confirm that this is a massive sample. One of the newly discovered clusters, ACT-CL J0044.4+0113 at z = 1.1 (photometric), has an integrated XMM-Newton X-ray temperature of kT X = 7.9 ± 1.0 keV and combined mass of M 200a = 8.2 +3.3 –2.5 × 10 14 h –1 70 M ☉ , placing it among the most massive and X-ray-hot clusters known at redshifts beyond z = 1. We also highlight the optically rich cluster ACT-CL J2327.4–0204 (RCS2 2327) at z = 0.705 (spectroscopic) as the most significant detection of the whole equatorial sample with a Chandra-derived mass of M 200a = 1.9 +0.6 –0.4 × 10 15 h –1 70 M ☉ , placing it in the ranks of the most massive known clusters like El Gordo and the Bullet Cluster.

  1. VLA Discovers Giant Rings Around Galaxy Cluster

    Science.gov (United States)

    2006-11-01

    Astronomers using the National Science Foundation's Very Large Array (VLA) radio telescope have discovered giant, ring-like structures around a cluster of galaxies. The discovery provides tantalizing new information about how such galaxy clusters are assembled, about magnetic fields in the vast spaces between galaxy clusters, and possibly about the origin of cosmic rays. Radio-Optical Image of Cluster Galaxy Cluster Abell 3376 (Radio/Optical) CREDIT: Joydeep Bagchi, IUCAA, NRAO/AUI/NSF Above, a combined radio/optical image shows the galaxy cluster Abell 3376 in visible light (blue) and radio (red) images. The giant radio arcs surrounding the cluster were discovered using the Very Large Array. The visible-light image is from the Digitized Sky survey. Below, an X-ray image of Abell 3376 made using the European Space Agency's XMM-Newton telescope shows a spectacular, bullet-shaped region of X-rays coming from gas heated to 60 million degrees Kelvin. The bullet shape results from the supersonic collision of a smaller smaller galaxy subcluster with the main body of the larger cluster. Click on images for larger version. X-Ray Image of Cluster Galaxy Cluster Abell 3376 (X-Ray) CREDIT: Joydeep Bagchi, IUCAA, ESA "These giant, radio-emitting rings probably are the result of shock waves caused by violent collisions of smaller groups of galaxies within the cluster," said Joydeep Bagchi, of the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics in Pune, India, who led an international research team. The scientists reported their findings in the November 3 edition of the journal Science. The newly-discovered ring segments, some 6 million light-years across, surround a galaxy cluster called Abell 3376, more than 600 million light-years from Earth. They were revealed because fast-moving electrons emitted radio waves as they spiraled around magnetic field lines in intergalactic space. "Even from this large distance, the feeble radio waves were easily picked up by the VLA

  2. DISCOVERY OF A STRONG LENSING GALAXY EMBEDDED IN A CLUSTER AT z = 1.62

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wong, Kenneth C.; Suyu, Sherry H.; Tran, Kim-Vy H.; Papovich, Casey J.; Momcheva, Ivelina G.; Brammer, Gabriel B.; Koekemoer, Anton M.; Brodwin, Mark; Gonzalez, Anthony H.; Kacprzak, Glenn G.; Rudnick, Gregory H.; Halkola, Aleksi

    2014-01-01

    We identify a strong lensing galaxy in the cluster IRC 0218 (also known as XMM-LSS J02182–05102) that is spectroscopically confirmed to be at z = 1.62, making it the highest-redshift strong lens galaxy known. The lens is one of the two brightest cluster galaxies and lenses a background source galaxy into an arc and a counterimage. With Hubble Space Telescope (HST) grism and Keck/LRIS spectroscopy, we measure the source redshift to be z S = 2.26. Using HST imaging in ACS/F475W, ACS/F814W, WFC3/F125W, and WFC3/F160W, we model the lens mass distribution with an elliptical power-law profile and account for the effects of the cluster halo and nearby galaxies. The Einstein radius is θ E =0.38 −0.01 +0.02 arcsec (3.2 −0.1 +0.2 kpc) and the total enclosed mass is M tot (<θ E )=1.8 −0.1 +0.2 ×10 11 M ⊙ . We estimate that the cluster environment contributes ∼10% of this total mass. Assuming a Chabrier initial mass function (IMF), the dark matter fraction within θ E is f DM Chab =0.3 −0.3 +0.1 , while a Salpeter IMF is marginally inconsistent with the enclosed mass (f DM Salp =−0.3 −0.5 +0.2 ). The total magnification of the source is μ tot =2.1 −0.3 +0.4 . The source has at least one bright compact region offset from the source center. Emission from Lyα and [O III] are likely to probe different regions in the source

  3. First-principles study on stability and magnetism of AlnZn (n=1-9) clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ren Xiaojun; Li Baoxing

    2010-01-01

    We have investigated the structures, stabilities and magnetism of zinc-doped Al n (n=1-9) clusters in detail by using first-principles density functional theory. Our calculated results indicate that the ground state structures of the mixed Al n Zn (n=1-9) clusters doped with one zinc atom can be obtained from the most stable structures of the pure Al n (n=2-10) clusters by substitutional type. The impurity atom causes local structural distortion due to different atomic radii and different bonding characteristics. It is found that the clusters with total atom numbers of 3 and 7 exhibit high stability. In addition, the energy gaps E g s between the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) show obvious even/odd alternation with cluster size. Furthermore, we investigate the magnetism of the mixed clusters. The Al 4 Zn, Al 6 Zn and Al 8 Zn clusters with even number of electrons do not have any magnetism. All Al 1 Zn, Al 5 Zn, Al 7 Zn and Al 9 Zn clusters have the total magnetic moment of 1.0 μ B due to one unpaired electron. Unexpectedly, the Al 2 Zn and Al 3 Zn clusters show total magnetic moments of 2.0 and 3.0 μ B , respectively. The magnetism arises from the sp-d hybridization due to charge transfer and the influence of the impurity zinc atom.

  4. Fixation Strength of Polyetheretherketone Sheath-and-Bullet Device for Soft Tissue Repair in the Foot and Ankle.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christensen, Jay; Fischer, Brian; Nute, Michael; Rizza, Robert

    Tendon transfers are often performed in the foot and ankle. Recently, interference screws have been a popular choice owing to their ease of use and fixation strength. Considering the benefits, one disadvantage of such devices is laceration of the soft tissues by the implant threads during placement that potentially weaken the structural integrity of the grafts. A shape memory polyetheretherketone bullet-in-sheath tenodesis device uses circumferential compression, eliminating potential damage from thread rotation and maintaining the soft tissue orientation of the graft. The aim of this study was to determine the pullout strength and failure mode for this device in both a synthetic bone analogue and porcine bone models. Thirteen mature bovine extensor tendons were secured into ten 4.0 × 4.0 × 4.0-cm cubes of 15-pound per cubic foot solid rigid polyurethane foam bone analogue models or 3 porcine femoral condyles using the 5 × 20-mm polyetheretherketone soft tissue anchor. The bullet-in-sheath device demonstrated a mean pullout of 280.84 N in the bone analog models and 419.47 N in the porcine bone models. (p = .001). The bullet-in-sheath design preserved the integrity of the tendon graft, and none of the implants dislodged from their original position. Copyright © 2017 The American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Collision of Bose Condensate Dark Matter structures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guzman, F. S.

    2008-01-01

    The status of the scalar field or Bose condensate dark matter model is presented. Results about the solitonic behavior in collision of structures is presented as a possible explanation to the recent-possibly-solitonic behavior in the bullet cluster merger. Some estimates about the possibility to simulate the bullet cluster under the Bose Condensate dark matter model are indicated.

  6. The E-MOSAICS project: simulating the formation and co-evolution of galaxies and their star cluster populations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pfeffer, Joel; Kruijssen, J. M. Diederik; Crain, Robert A.; Bastian, Nate

    2018-04-01

    We introduce the MOdelling Star cluster population Assembly In Cosmological Simulations within EAGLE (E-MOSAICS) project. E-MOSAICS incorporates models describing the formation, evolution, and disruption of star clusters into the EAGLE galaxy formation simulations, enabling the examination of the co-evolution of star clusters and their host galaxies in a fully cosmological context. A fraction of the star formation rate of dense gas is assumed to yield a cluster population; this fraction and the population's initial properties are governed by the physical properties of the natal gas. The subsequent evolution and disruption of the entire cluster population are followed accounting for two-body relaxation, stellar evolution, and gravitational shocks induced by the local tidal field. This introductory paper presents a detailed description of the model and initial results from a suite of 10 simulations of ˜L⋆ galaxies with disc-like morphologies at z = 0. The simulations broadly reproduce key observed characteristics of young star clusters and globular clusters (GCs), without invoking separate formation mechanisms for each population. The simulated GCs are the surviving population of massive clusters formed at early epochs (z ≳ 1-2), when the characteristic pressures and surface densities of star-forming gas were significantly higher than observed in local galaxies. We examine the influence of the star formation and assembly histories of galaxies on their cluster populations, finding that (at similar present-day mass) earlier-forming galaxies foster a more massive and disruption-resilient cluster population, while galaxies with late mergers are capable of forming massive clusters even at late cosmic epochs. We find that the phenomenological treatment of interstellar gas in EAGLE precludes the accurate modelling of cluster disruption in low-density environments, but infer that simulations incorporating an explicitly modelled cold interstellar gas phase will overcome

  7. The Dream About the Magic Silver Bullet – the Complexity of Designing for Tablet-Mediated Learning

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jahnke, Isa; Svendsen, Niels Vandel; Johansen, Simon Kristoffer

    2014-01-01

    learning. We report the gaps and interrelations between the dreams and the practice of the teachers. They dream about an interconnected praxis – the magic silver bullet – and establish their visions of inter- connectivity because of their breakdown experiences of media tablets aiding complexity instead...

  8. E-learning or educational leaflet: does it make a difference in oral health promotion? A clustered randomized trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al Bardaweel, Susan; Dashash, Mayssoon

    2018-05-10

    The early recognition of technology together with great ability to use computers and smart systems have promoted researchers to investigate the possibilities of utilizing technology for improving health care in children. The aim of this study was to compare between the traditional educational leaflets and E-applications in improving oral health knowledge, oral hygiene and gingival health in schoolchildren of Damascus city, Syria. A clustered randomized controlled trial at two public primary schools was performed. About 220 schoolchildren aged 10-11 years were included in this study and grouped into two clusters. Children in Leaflet cluster received oral health education through leaflets, while children in E-learning cluster received oral health education through an E-learning program. A questionnaire was designed to register information related to oral health knowledge and to record Plaque and Gingival indices. Questionnaire administration and clinical assessment were undertaken at baseline, 6 and at 12 weeks of oral health education. Data was analysed using one way repeated measures ANOVA, post hoc Bonferroni test and independent samples t-test. Leaflet cluster (107 participants) had statistically significant better oral health knowledge than E-learning cluster (104 participants) at 6 weeks (P E-learning cluster:100 participants). The mean knowledge gain compared to baseline was higher in Leaflet cluster than in E-learning cluster. A significant reduction in the PI means at 6 weeks and 12 weeks was observed in both clusters (P E-learning cluster at 6 weeks (P E-learning cluster at 6 weeks (P < 0.05) and 12 weeks (P < 0.05). Traditional educational leaflets are an effective tool in the improvement of both oral health knowledge as well as clinical indices of oral hygiene and care among Syrian children. Leaflets can be used in school-based oral health education for a positive outcome. Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ( ACTRN

  9. DISCOVERY OF A STRONG LENSING GALAXY EMBEDDED IN A CLUSTER AT z = 1.62

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wong, Kenneth C.; Suyu, Sherry H. [Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Academia Sinica (ASIAA), P.O. Box 23-141, Taipei 10617, Taiwan (China); Tran, Kim-Vy H.; Papovich, Casey J. [George P. and Cynthia W. Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics and Astronomy, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A and M University, College Station, TX 77843 (United States); Momcheva, Ivelina G. [Astronomy Department, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511 (United States); Brammer, Gabriel B.; Koekemoer, Anton M. [Space Telescope Science Institute, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States); Brodwin, Mark [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Missouri, 5110 Rockhill Road, Kansas City, MO 64110 (United States); Gonzalez, Anthony H. [Department of Astronomy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States); Kacprzak, Glenn G. [Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria 3122 (Australia); Rudnick, Gregory H. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Kansas, Malott Room 1082, 1251 Wescoe Hall Drive, Lawrence, KS 66045 (United States); Halkola, Aleksi

    2014-07-10

    We identify a strong lensing galaxy in the cluster IRC 0218 (also known as XMM-LSS J02182–05102) that is spectroscopically confirmed to be at z = 1.62, making it the highest-redshift strong lens galaxy known. The lens is one of the two brightest cluster galaxies and lenses a background source galaxy into an arc and a counterimage. With Hubble Space Telescope (HST) grism and Keck/LRIS spectroscopy, we measure the source redshift to be z {sub S} = 2.26. Using HST imaging in ACS/F475W, ACS/F814W, WFC3/F125W, and WFC3/F160W, we model the lens mass distribution with an elliptical power-law profile and account for the effects of the cluster halo and nearby galaxies. The Einstein radius is θ{sub E}=0.38{sub −0.01}{sup +0.02} arcsec (3.2{sub −0.1}{sup +0.2} kpc) and the total enclosed mass is M {sub tot}(<θ{sub E})=1.8{sub −0.1}{sup +0.2}×10{sup 11} M{sub ⊙}. We estimate that the cluster environment contributes ∼10% of this total mass. Assuming a Chabrier initial mass function (IMF), the dark matter fraction within θ{sub E} is f{sub DM}{sup Chab}=0.3{sub −0.3}{sup +0.1}, while a Salpeter IMF is marginally inconsistent with the enclosed mass (f{sub DM}{sup Salp}=−0.3{sub −0.5}{sup +0.2}). The total magnification of the source is μ{sub tot}=2.1{sub −0.3}{sup +0.4}. The source has at least one bright compact region offset from the source center. Emission from Lyα and [O III] are likely to probe different regions in the source.

  10. X-1E on Lakebed

    Science.gov (United States)

    1955-01-01

    The Bell Aircraft Corporation X-1E in 1955 on the Rogers Dry Lakebed near the NACA High-Speed Flight Station, Edwards, California. The X-1E was notable for being shorter, with a thinner wing than the X-1A, -B, and -D. Aerodynamic heating caused the ailerons, rudder, and elevators to remain unpainted throughout the X-1E's flight test program. When the ventral fins were added, they were left unpainted too. On August 31, 1956, the aircraft reached a top speed of 1,480 miles per hour (Mach 2.24). There were four versions of the Bell X-1 rocket-powered research aircraft that flew at the NACA High-Speed Flight Research Station, Edwards, California. The bullet-shaped X-1 aircraft were built by Bell Aircraft Corporation, Buffalo, N.Y. for the U.S. Army Air Forces (after 1947, U.S. Air Force) and the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). The X-1 Program was originally designated the XS-1 for EXperimental Supersonic. The X-1's mission was to investigate the transonic speed range (speeds from just below to just above the speed of sound) and, if possible, to break the 'sound barrier.' Three different X-1s were built and designated: X-1-1, X-1-2 (later modified to become the X-1E), and X-1-3. The basic X-1 aircraft were flown by a large number of different pilots from 1946 to 1951. The X-1 Program not only proved that humans could go beyond the speed of sound, it reinforced the understanding that technological barriers could be overcome. The X-1s pioneered many structural and aerodynamic advances including extremely thin, yet extremely strong wing sections; supersonic fuselage configurations; control system requirements; powerplant compatibility; and cockpit environments. The X-1 aircraft were the first transonic-capable aircraft to use an all-moving stabilizer. The flights of the X-1s opened up a new era in aviation. The first X-1 was air-launched unpowered from a Boeing B-29 Superfortress on January 25, 1946. Powered flights began in December 1946. On October 14

  11. INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP GALAXIES IN CNOC1 CLUSTERS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li, I. H.; Yee, H. K. C.; Ellingson, E.

    2009-01-01

    Using wide-field BVR c I imaging for a sample of 16 intermediate redshift (0.17 red ) to infer the evolutionary status of galaxies in clusters, using both individual galaxies and galaxies in groups. We apply the local galaxy density, Σ 5 , derived using the fifth nearest neighbor distance, as a measure of local environment, and the cluster-centric radius, r CL , as a proxy for global cluster environment. Our cluster sample exhibits a Butcher-Oemler effect in both luminosity-selected and stellar-mass-selected samples. We find that f red depends strongly on Σ 5 and r CL , and the Butcher-Oemler effect is observed in all Σ 5 and r CL bins. However, when the cluster galaxies are separated into r CL bins, or into group and nongroup subsamples, the dependence on local galaxy density becomes much weaker. This suggests that the properties of the dark matter halo in which the galaxy resides have a dominant effect on its galaxy population and evolutionary history. We find that our data are consistent with the scenario that cluster galaxies situated in successively richer groups (i.e., more massive dark matter halos) reach a high f red value at earlier redshifts. Associated with this, we observe a clear signature of 'preprocessing', in which cluster galaxies belonging to moderately massive infalling galaxy groups show a much stronger evolution in f red than those classified as nongroup galaxies, especially at the outskirts of the cluster. This result suggests that galaxies in groups infalling into clusters are significant contributors to the Butcher-Oemler effect.

  12. CO2 laser photolysis of clustered ions, (1)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ikezoe, Yasumasa; Soga, Takeshi; Suzuki, Kazuya; Ohno, Shin-ichi.

    1990-09-01

    Vibrational excitation and the following decomposition of cluster ions by CO 2 laser photons are studied. Characteristics of the cluster ion and the CO 2 laser photon are summarized in their relation to the photolysis of cluster ions. An apparatus was installed, which is composed of (1) corona discharge-jet expansion section (formation of cluster ions), (2) CO 2 laser section (photolysis of cluster ions), and (3) mass spectrometer section. Experimental results of ammonia cluster ions were described. Effects of repeller voltage, shape of repellers, and adiabatic cooling are examined on the formation of ammonia cluster ions by corona discharge-jet expansion method. Collisional dissociation of cluster ions was observed at high repeller voltages. Size distribution of the ammonia cluster ion is discussed in connection with the temperature of cluster ions. Intensity of CO 2 laser was related to decomposition yield of cluster ions. (author)

  13. The Voronoi Tessellation cluster finder in 2+1 dimensions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Soares-Santos, Marcelle; /Fermilab /Sao Paulo U.; de Carvalho, Reinaldo R.; /Sao Jose, INPE; Annis, James; /Fermilab; Gal, Roy R.; /Hawaii U.; La Barbera, Francesco; /Capodimonte Observ.; Lopes, Paulo A.A.; /Valongo Observ.; Wechsler, Risa H.; Busha, Michael T.; Gerke, Brian F.; /SLAC /KIPAC, Menlo Park

    2010-11-01

    We present a detailed description of the Voronoi Tessellation (VT) cluster finder algorithm in 2+1 dimensions, which improves on past implementations of this technique. The need for cluster finder algorithms able to produce reliable cluster catalogs up to redshift 1 or beyond and down to 10{sup 13.5} solar masses is paramount especially in light of upcoming surveys aiming at cosmological constraints from galaxy cluster number counts. We build the VT in photometric redshift shells and use the two-point correlation function of the galaxies in the field to both determine the density threshold for detection of cluster candidates and to establish their significance. This allows us to detect clusters in a self-consistent way without any assumptions about their astrophysical properties. We apply the VT to mock catalogs which extend to redshift 1.4 reproducing the {Lambda}CDM cosmology and the clustering properties observed in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data. An objective estimate of the cluster selection function in terms of the completeness and purity as a function of mass and redshift is as important as having a reliable cluster finder. We measure these quantities by matching the VT cluster catalog with the mock truth table. We show that the VT can produce a cluster catalog with completeness and purity >80% for the redshift range up to {approx}1 and mass range down to {approx}10{sup 13.5} solar masses.

  14. The Voronoi Tessellation Cluster Finder in 2 1 Dimensions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Soares-Santos, Marcelle; /Fermilab /Sao Paulo U.; de Carvalho, Reinaldo R.; /Sao Jose, INPE; Annis, James; /Fermilab; Gal, Roy R.; /Hawaii U.; La Barbera, Francesco; /Capodimonte Observ.; Lopes, Paulo A.A.; /Valongo Observ.; Wechsler, Risa H.; Busha, Michael T.; Gerke, Brian F.; /SLAC /KIPAC, Menlo Park

    2011-06-23

    We present a detailed description of the Voronoi Tessellation (VT) cluster finder algorithm in 2+1 dimensions, which improves on past implementations of this technique. The need for cluster finder algorithms able to produce reliable cluster catalogs up to redshift 1 or beyond and down to 10{sup 13.5} solar masses is paramount especially in light of upcoming surveys aiming at cosmological constraints from galaxy cluster number counts. We build the VT in photometric redshift shells and use the two-point correlation function of the galaxies in the field to both determine the density threshold for detection of cluster candidates and to establish their significance. This allows us to detect clusters in a self-consistent way without any assumptions about their astrophysical properties. We apply the VT to mock catalogs which extend to redshift 1.4 reproducing the ?CDM cosmology and the clustering properties observed in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data. An objective estimate of the cluster selection function in terms of the completeness and purity as a function of mass and redshift is as important as having a reliable cluster finder. We measure these quantities by matching the VT cluster catalog with the mock truth table. We show that the VT can produce a cluster catalog with completeness and purity >80% for the redshift range up to {approx}1 and mass range down to {approx}10{sup 13.5} solar masses.

  15. THE VORONOI TESSELLATION CLUSTER FINDER IN 2+1 DIMENSIONS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Soares-Santos, Marcelle; Annis, James; De Carvalho, Reinaldo R.; Gal, Roy R.; La Barbera, Francesco; Lopes, Paulo A. A.; Wechsler, Risa H.; Busha, Michael T.; Gerke, Brian F.

    2011-01-01

    We present a detailed description of the Voronoi Tessellation (VT) cluster finder algorithm in 2+1 dimensions, which improves on past implementations of this technique. The need for cluster finder algorithms able to produce reliable cluster catalogs up to redshift 1 or beyond and down to 10 13.5 solar masses is paramount especially in light of upcoming surveys aiming at cosmological constraints from galaxy cluster number counts. We build the VT in photometric redshift shells and use the two-point correlation function of the galaxies in the field to both determine the density threshold for detection of cluster candidates and to establish their significance. This allows us to detect clusters in a self-consistent way without any assumptions about their astrophysical properties. We apply the VT to mock catalogs which extend to redshift 1.4 reproducing the ΛCDM cosmology and the clustering properties observed in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data. An objective estimate of the cluster selection function in terms of the completeness and purity as a function of mass and redshift is as important as having a reliable cluster finder. We measure these quantities by matching the VT cluster catalog with the mock truth table. We show that the VT can produce a cluster catalog with completeness and purity >80% for the redshift range up to ∼1 and mass range down to ∼10 13.5 solar masses.

  16. Potential hazard to human health from exposure to fragments of lead bullets and shot in the tissues of game animals.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Deborah J Pain

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Lead is highly toxic to animals. Humans eating game killed using lead ammunition generally avoid swallowing shot or bullets and dietary lead exposure from this source has been considered low. Recent evidence illustrates that lead bullets fragment on impact, leaving small lead particles widely distributed in game tissues. Our paper asks whether lead gunshot pellets also fragment upon impact, and whether lead derived from spent gunshot and bullets in the tissues of game animals could pose a threat to human health. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Wild-shot gamebirds (6 species obtained in the UK were X-rayed to determine the number of shot and shot fragments present, and cooked using typical methods. Shot were then removed to simulate realistic practice before consumption, and lead concentrations determined. Data from the Veterinary Medicines Directorate Statutory Surveillance Programme documenting lead levels in raw tissues of wild gamebirds and deer, without shot being removed, are also presented. Gamebirds containing > or =5 shot had high tissue lead concentrations, but some with fewer or no shot also had high lead concentrations, confirming X-ray results indicating that small lead fragments remain in the flesh of birds even when the shot exits the body. A high proportion of samples from both surveys had lead concentrations exceeding the European Union Maximum Level of 100 ppb w.w. (0.1 mg kg(-1 w.w. for meat from bovine animals, sheep, pigs and poultry (no level is set for game meat, some by several orders of magnitude. High, but feasible, levels of consumption of some species could result in the current FAO/WHO Provisional Weekly Tolerable Intake of lead being exceeded. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The potential health hazard from lead ingested in the meat of game animals may be larger than previous risk assessments indicated, especially for vulnerable groups, such as children, and those consuming large amounts of game.

  17. Discovering Massive z > 1 Galaxy Clusters with Spitzer and SPTpol

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bleem, Lindsey; Brodwin, Mark; Ashby, Matthew; Stalder, Brian; Klein, Matthias; Gladders, Michael; Stanford, Spencer; Canning, Rebecca

    2018-05-01

    We propose to obtain Spitzer/IRAC imaging of 50 high-redshift galaxy cluster candidates derived from two new completed SZ cluster surveys by the South Pole Telescope. Clusters from the deep SPTpol 500-square-deg main survey will extend high-redshift SZ cluster science to lower masses (median M500 2x10^14Msun) while systems drawn from the wider 2500-sq-deg SPTpol Extended Cluster Survey are some of the rarest most massive high-z clusters in the observable universe. The proposed small 10 h program will enable (1) confirmation of these candidates as high-redshift clusters, (2) measurements of the cluster redshifts (sigma_z/(1+z) 0.03), and (3) estimates of the stellar masses of the brightest cluster members. These observations will yield exciting and timely targets for the James Webb Space Telescope--and, combined with lower-z systems--will both extend cluster tests of dark energy to z>1 as well as enable studies of galaxy evolution in the richest environments for a mass-limited cluster sample from 01.8.

  18. Nonthermal emission from clusters of galaxies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kushnir, Doron; Waxman, Eli

    2009-01-01

    We show that the spectral and radial distribution of the nonthermal emission of massive, M ∼> 10 14.5 M ☉ , galaxy clusters may be approximately described by simple analytic expressions, which depend on the cluster thermal X-ray properties and on two model parameter, β core and η e . β core is the ratio of the cosmic-ray (CR) energy density (within a logarithmic CR energy interval) and the thermal energy density at the cluster core, and η e(p) is the fraction of the thermal energy generated in strong collisionless shocks, which is deposited in CR electrons (protons). Using a simple analytic model for the evolution of intra-cluster medium CRs, which are produced by accretion shocks, we find that β core ≅ η p /200, nearly independent of cluster mass and with a scatter Δln β core ≅ 1 between clusters of given mass. We show that the hard X-ray (HXR) and γ-ray luminosities produced by inverse Compton scattering of CMB photons by electrons accelerated in accretion shocks (primary electrons) exceed the luminosities produced by secondary particles (generated in hadronic interactions within the cluster) by factors ≅ 500(η e /η p )(T/10 keV) −1/2 and ≅ 150(η e /η p )(T/10 keV) −1/2 respectively, where T is the cluster temperature. Secondary particle emission may dominate at the radio and very high energy (∼> 1 TeV) γ-ray bands. Our model predicts, in contrast with some earlier work, that the HXR and γ-ray emission from clusters of galaxies are extended, since the emission is dominated at these energies by primary (rather than by secondary) electrons. Our predictions are consistent with the observed nonthermal emission of the Coma cluster for η p ∼ η e ∼ 0.1. The implications of our predictions to future HXR observations (e.g. by NuStar, Simbol-X) and to (space/ground based) γ-ray observations (e.g. by Fermi, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS) are discussed. In particular, we identify the clusters which are the best candidates for detection in

  19. Nonthermal emission from clusters of galaxies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kushnir, Doron; Waxman, Eli

    2009-08-01

    We show that the spectral and radial distribution of the nonthermal emission of massive, M gtrsim 1014.5Msun, galaxy clusters may be approximately described by simple analytic expressions, which depend on the cluster thermal X-ray properties and on two model parameter, βcore and ηe. βcore is the ratio of the cosmic-ray (CR) energy density (within a logarithmic CR energy interval) and the thermal energy density at the cluster core, and ηe(p) is the fraction of the thermal energy generated in strong collisionless shocks, which is deposited in CR electrons (protons). Using a simple analytic model for the evolution of intra-cluster medium CRs, which are produced by accretion shocks, we find that βcore simeq ηp/200, nearly independent of cluster mass and with a scatter Δln βcore simeq 1 between clusters of given mass. We show that the hard X-ray (HXR) and γ-ray luminosities produced by inverse Compton scattering of CMB photons by electrons accelerated in accretion shocks (primary electrons) exceed the luminosities produced by secondary particles (generated in hadronic interactions within the cluster) by factors simeq 500(ηe/ηp)(T/10 keV)-1/2 and simeq 150(ηe/ηp)(T/10 keV)-1/2 respectively, where T is the cluster temperature. Secondary particle emission may dominate at the radio and very high energy (gtrsim 1 TeV) γ-ray bands. Our model predicts, in contrast with some earlier work, that the HXR and γ-ray emission from clusters of galaxies are extended, since the emission is dominated at these energies by primary (rather than by secondary) electrons. Our predictions are consistent with the observed nonthermal emission of the Coma cluster for ηp ~ ηe ~ 0.1. The implications of our predictions to future HXR observations (e.g. by NuStar, Simbol-X) and to (space/ground based) γ-ray observations (e.g. by Fermi, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS) are discussed. In particular, we identify the clusters which are the best candidates for detection in γ-rays. Finally, we show

  20. Star clusters and K2

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dotson, Jessie; Barentsen, Geert; Cody, Ann Marie

    2018-01-01

    The K2 survey has expanded the Kepler legacy by using the repurposed spacecraft to observe over 20 star clusters. The sample includes open and globular clusters at all ages, including very young (1-10 Myr, e.g. Taurus, Upper Sco, NGC 6530), moderately young (0.1-1 Gyr, e.g. M35, M44, Pleiades, Hyades), middle-aged (e.g. M67, Ruprecht 147, NGC 2158), and old globular clusters (e.g. M9, M19, Terzan 5). K2 observations of stellar clusters are exploring the rotation period-mass relationship to significantly lower masses than was previously possible, shedding light on the angular momentum budget and its dependence on mass and circumstellar disk properties, and illuminating the role of multiplicity in stellar angular momentum. Exoplanets discovered by K2 in stellar clusters provides planetary systems ripe for modeling given the extensive information available about their ages and environment. I will review the star clusters sampled by K2 across 16 fields so far, highlighting several characteristics, caveats, and unexplored uses of the public data set along the way. With fuel expected to run out in 2018, I will discuss the closing Campaigns, highlight the final target selection opportunities, and explain the data archive and TESS-compatible software tools the K2 mission intends to leave behind for posterity.

  1. Stopping of hypervelocity clusters in solids

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anders, Christian; Ziegenhain, Gerolf; Urbassek, Herbert M; Bringa, Eduardo M

    2011-01-01

    Using molecular-dynamics simulations, we study the processes underlying the stopping of energetic clusters upon impact in matter. We investigate self-bombardment of both a metallic (Cu) and a van-der-Waals bonded (frozen Ar) target. Clusters with sizes up to N = 10 4 atoms and with energies per atom of E/N = 0.1-1600 eV atom -1 were studied. We find that the stopping force exerted on a cluster follows an N 2/3 -dependence with cluster size N; thus large clusters experience less stopping than equi-velocity atoms. In the course of being stopped, the cluster is strongly deformed and attains a roughly pancake shape. Due to the cluster inertia, maximum deformation occurs later than the maximum stopping force. The time scale of projectile stopping is set by t 0 , the time the cluster needs to cover its own diameter before impacting the target; it thus depends on both cluster size and velocity. The time when the cluster experiences its maximum stopping force is around (0.7-0.8)t 0 . We find that the cluster is deformed with huge strain rates of around 1/2t 0 ; this amounts to 10 11 -10 13 s -1 for the cases studied here. (paper)

  2. Atmospheric pressure plasma jets : properties of plasma bullets and the dynamics of the interaction with dielectric surfaces

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sobota, A.; Slikboer, E.; Guaitella, O.Y.N.

    2015-01-01

    Cold atmospheric pressure plasma jets, although mostly researched for applications in surface treatment, are rarely investigated in the presence of a surface. This paper presents the properties of plasma bullets formed in the capillary as well as the dynamics of the propagation of the plasma on

  3. Chemisorption on size-selected metal clusters: activation barriers and chemical reactions for deuterium and aluminum cluster ions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jarrold, M.F.; Bower, J.E.

    1988-01-01

    The authors describe a new approach to investigating chemisorption on size-selected metal clusters. This approach involves investigating the collision-energy dependence of chemisorption using low-energy ion beam techniques. The method provides a direct measure of the activation barrier for chemisorption and in some cases an estimate of the desorption energy as well. They describe the application of this technique to chemisorption of deuterium on size-selected aluminum clusters. The activation barriers increase with cluster size (from a little over 1 eV for Al 10 + to around 2 eV for Al 27 + ) and show significant odd-even oscillations. The activation barriers for the clusters with an odd number of atoms are larger than those for the even-numbered clusters. In addition to chemisorption of deuterium onto the clusters, chemical reactions were observed, often resulting in cluster fragmentation. The main products observed were Al/sub n-1/D + , Al/sub n-2/ + , and Al + for clusters with n + and Al/sub n-1/D + for the larger clusters

  4. Detection of CO emission in Hydra 1 cluster galaxies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huchtmeier, W.K.

    1990-01-01

    A survey of bright Hydra cluster spiral galaxies for the CO(1-0) transition at 115 GHz was performed with the 15m Swedish-ESO submillimeter telescope (SEST). Five out of 15 galaxies observed have been detected in the CO(1-0) line. The largest spiral galaxy in the cluster, NGC 3312, got more CO than any spiral of the Virgo cluster. This Sa-type galaxy is optically largely distorted and disrupted on one side. It is a good candidate for ram pressure stripping while passing through the cluster's central region. A comparison with global CO properties of Virgo cluster spirals shows a relatively good agreement with the detected Hydra cluster galaxies

  5. The radio relics and halo of El Gordo, a massive z = 0.870 cluster merger

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lindner, Robert R.; Baker, Andrew J.; Hughes, John P. [Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 136 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8019 (United States); Battaglia, Nick [McWilliams Center for Cosmology, Wean Hall, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15213 (United States); Gupta, Neeraj [ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, Postbus 2, 7990 AA Dwingeloo (Netherlands); Knowles, Kenda; Moodley, Kavilan [Astrophysics and Cosmology Research Unit, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4041 (South Africa); Marriage, Tobias A. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218-2686 (United States); Menanteau, Felipe [National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1205 W. Clark St., Urbana, IL 61801 (United States); Reese, Erik D. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, 209 South 33rd St., Philadelphia, PA 19104 (United States); Srianand, Raghunathan, E-mail: rlindner@astro.wisc.edu [IUCAA, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411007 (India)

    2014-05-01

    We present 610 MHz and 2.1 GHz imaging of the massive Sunyaev-Zel'dovich Effect selected z = 0.870 cluster merger ACT-CL J0102–4915 ({sup E}l Gordo{sup )}, obtained with the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope and the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA), respectively. We detect two complexes of radio relics separated by 3.'4 (1.6 Mpc) along the system's northwest-to-southeast collision axis that have high integrated polarization fractions (33%) and steep spectral indices (α between 1 and 2; S {sub ν}∝ν{sup –α}), consistent with creation via Fermi acceleration by shocks in the intracluster medium triggered by the cluster collision. From the spectral index of the relics, we compute a Mach number M=2.5{sub −0.3}{sup +0.7} and shock speed of 2500{sub −300}{sup +400} km s{sup −1}. With our wide-bandwidth, full-polarization ATCA data, we compute the Faraday depth φ across the northwest relic and find a range of values spanning Δφ = 30 rad m{sup –2}, with a mean value of (φ) = 11 rad m{sup –2} and standard deviation σ{sub φ} = 6 rad m{sup –2}. With the integrated line-of-sight gas density derived from new Chandra X-ray observations, our Faraday depth measurement implies B {sub ∥} ∼ 0.01 μG in the cluster outskirts. The extremely narrow shock widths in the relics (d {sub shock} ≤ 23 kpc), caused by the short synchrotron cooling timescale of relativistic electrons at z = 0.870, prevent us from placing a meaningful constraint on the magnetic field strength B using cooling time arguments. In addition to the relics, we detect a large (r {sub H} ≅ 1.1 Mpc radius), powerful (log (L {sub 1.4}/W Hz{sup –1}) = 25.66 ± 0.12) radio halo with a shape similar to El Gordo's 'bullet'-like X-ray morphology. The spatially resolved spectral-index map of the halo shows the synchrotron spectrum is flattest near the relics, along the system's collision axis, and in regions of high T {sub gas}, all locations associated

  6. To drink or grasp? How bullet ants ( Paraponera clavata) differentiate between sugars and proteins in liquids

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jandt, Jennifer; Larson, Hannah K.; Tellez, Peter; McGlynn, Terrence P.

    2013-12-01

    Flexibility in behavior can increase the likelihood that a forager may respond optimally in a fluctuating environment. Nevertheless, physiological or neuronal constraints may result in suboptimal responses to stimuli. We observed foraging workers of the giant tropical ant (also referred to as the "bullet ant"), Paraponera clavata, as they reacted to liquid solutions with varying concentrations of sugar and protein. We show that when protein/sucrose concentration is high, many bullet ants will often try to grasp at the droplet, rather than gather it by drinking. Because P. clavata actively hunt for prey, fixed action patterns and rapid responses to protein may be adaptively important, regardless of the medium in which it is presented. We conclude that, in P. clavata, food-handling decisions are made in response to the nutrient content of the food rather than the texture of the food. Further, we suggest that colonies that maintain a mixture of individuals with consistent fixed or flexible behavioral responses to food-handling decisions may be better adapted to fluctuating environmental conditions, and we propose future studies that could address this.

  7. Search for low-frequency diffuse radio emission around a shock in the massive galaxy cluster MACS J0744.9+3927

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilber, A.; Brüggen, M.; Bonafede, A.; Rafferty, D.; Savini, F.; Shimwell, T.; van Weeren, R. J.; Botteon, A.; Cassano, R.; Brunetti, G.; De Gasperin, F.; Wittor, D.; Hoeft, M.; Birzan, L.

    2018-05-01

    Merging galaxy clusters produce low-Mach-number shocks in the intracluster medium. These shocks can accelerate electrons to relativistic energies that are detectable at radio frequencies. MACS J0744.9+3927 is a massive [M500 = (11.8 ± 2.8) × 1014 M⊙], high-redshift (z = 0.6976) cluster where a Bullet-type merger is presumed to have taken place. Sunyaev-Zel'dovich maps from MUSTANG indicate that a shock, with Mach number M = 1.0-2.9 and an extension of ˜200 kpc, sits near the centre of the cluster. The shock is also detected as a brightness and temperature discontinuity in X-ray observations. To search for diffuse radio emission associated with the merger, we have imaged the cluster with the LOw Frequency ARray (LOFAR) at 120-165 MHz. Our LOFAR radio images reveal previously undetected AGN emission, but do not show clear cluster-scale diffuse emission in the form of a radio relic nor a radio halo. The region of the shock is on the western edge of AGN lobe emission from the brightest cluster galaxy. Correlating the flux of known shock-induced radio relics versus their size, we find that the radio emission overlapping the shocked region in MACS J0744.9+3927 is likely of AGN origin. We argue against the presence of a relic caused by diffusive shock acceleration and suggest that the shock is too weak to accelerate electrons from the intracluster medium.

  8. Nonthermal emission from clusters of galaxies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kushnir, Doron; Waxman, Eli, E-mail: doron.kushnir@weizmann.ac.il, E-mail: eli.waxman@weizmann.ac.il [Physics Faculty, Weizmann Institute of Science, PO Box 26, Rehovot (Israel)

    2009-08-01

    We show that the spectral and radial distribution of the nonthermal emission of massive, M ∼> 10{sup 14.5}M{sub ☉}, galaxy clusters may be approximately described by simple analytic expressions, which depend on the cluster thermal X-ray properties and on two model parameter, β{sub core} and η{sub e}. β{sub core} is the ratio of the cosmic-ray (CR) energy density (within a logarithmic CR energy interval) and the thermal energy density at the cluster core, and η{sub e(p)} is the fraction of the thermal energy generated in strong collisionless shocks, which is deposited in CR electrons (protons). Using a simple analytic model for the evolution of intra-cluster medium CRs, which are produced by accretion shocks, we find that β{sub core} ≅ η{sub p}/200, nearly independent of cluster mass and with a scatter Δln β{sub core} ≅ 1 between clusters of given mass. We show that the hard X-ray (HXR) and γ-ray luminosities produced by inverse Compton scattering of CMB photons by electrons accelerated in accretion shocks (primary electrons) exceed the luminosities produced by secondary particles (generated in hadronic interactions within the cluster) by factors ≅ 500(η{sub e}/η{sub p})(T/10 keV){sup −1/2} and ≅ 150(η{sub e}/η{sub p})(T/10 keV){sup −1/2} respectively, where T is the cluster temperature. Secondary particle emission may dominate at the radio and very high energy (∼> 1 TeV) γ-ray bands. Our model predicts, in contrast with some earlier work, that the HXR and γ-ray emission from clusters of galaxies are extended, since the emission is dominated at these energies by primary (rather than by secondary) electrons. Our predictions are consistent with the observed nonthermal emission of the Coma cluster for η{sub p} ∼ η{sub e} ∼ 0.1. The implications of our predictions to future HXR observations (e.g. by NuStar, Simbol-X) and to (space/ground based) γ-ray observations (e.g. by Fermi, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS) are discussed. In particular

  9. Categorias Cluster

    OpenAIRE

    Queiroz, Dayane Andrade

    2015-01-01

    Neste trabalho apresentamos as categorias cluster, que foram introduzidas por Aslak Bakke Buan, Robert Marsh, Markus Reineke, Idun Reiten e Gordana Todorov, com o objetivo de categoriíicar as algebras cluster criadas em 2002 por Sergey Fomin e Andrei Zelevinsky. Os autores acima, em [4], mostraram que existe uma estreita relação entre algebras cluster e categorias cluster para quivers cujo grafo subjacente é um diagrama de Dynkin. Para isto desenvolveram uma teoria tilting na estrutura triang...

  10. A remarkably stable TipE gene cluster: evolution of insect Para sodium channel auxiliary subunits

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Li Jia

    2011-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background First identified in fruit flies with temperature-sensitive paralysis phenotypes, the Drosophila melanogaster TipE locus encodes four voltage-gated sodium (NaV channel auxiliary subunits. This cluster of TipE-like genes on chromosome 3L, and a fifth family member on chromosome 3R, are important for the optional expression and functionality of the Para NaV channel but appear quite distinct from auxiliary subunits in vertebrates. Here, we exploited available arthropod genomic resources to trace the origin of TipE-like genes by mapping their evolutionary histories and examining their genomic architectures. Results We identified a remarkably conserved synteny block of TipE-like orthologues with well-maintained local gene arrangements from 21 insect species. Homologues in the water flea, Daphnia pulex, suggest an ancestral pancrustacean repertoire of four TipE-like genes; a subsequent gene duplication may have generated functional redundancy allowing gene losses in the silk moth and mosquitoes. Intronic nesting of the insect TipE gene cluster probably occurred following the divergence from crustaceans, but in the flour beetle and silk moth genomes the clusters apparently escaped from nesting. Across Pancrustacea, TipE gene family members have experienced intronic nesting, escape from nesting, retrotransposition, translocation, and gene loss events while generally maintaining their local gene neighbourhoods. D. melanogaster TipE-like genes exhibit coordinated spatial and temporal regulation of expression distinct from their host gene but well-correlated with their regulatory target, the Para NaV channel, suggesting that functional constraints may preserve the TipE gene cluster. We identified homology between TipE-like NaV channel regulators and vertebrate Slo-beta auxiliary subunits of big-conductance calcium-activated potassium (BKCa channels, which suggests that ion channel regulatory partners have evolved distinct lineage

  11. U1 snDNA clusters in grasshoppers: chromosomal dynamics and genomic organization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anjos, A; Ruiz-Ruano, F J; Camacho, J P M; Loreto, V; Cabrero, J; de Souza, M J; Cabral-de-Mello, D C

    2015-01-01

    The spliceosome, constituted by a protein set associated with small nuclear RNA (snRNA), is responsible for mRNA maturation through intron removal. Among snRNA genes, U1 is generally a conserved repetitive sequence. To unveil the chromosomal/genomic dynamics of this multigene family in grasshoppers, we mapped U1 genes by fluorescence in situ hybridization in 70 species belonging to the families Proscopiidae, Pyrgomorphidae, Ommexechidae, Romaleidae and Acrididae. Evident clusters were observed in all species, indicating that, at least, some U1 repeats are tandemly arrayed. High conservation was observed in the first four families, with most species carrying a single U1 cluster, frequently located in the third or fourth longest autosome. By contrast, extensive variation was observed among Acrididae, from a single chromosome pair carrying U1 to all chromosome pairs carrying it, with occasional occurrence of two or more clusters in the same chromosome. DNA sequence analysis in Eyprepocnemis plorans (species carrying U1 clusters on seven different chromosome pairs) and Locusta migratoria (carrying U1 in a single chromosome pair) supported the coexistence of functional and pseudogenic lineages. One of these pseudogenic lineages was truncated in the same nucleotide position in both species, suggesting that it was present in a common ancestor to both species. At least in E. plorans, this U1 snDNA pseudogenic lineage was associated with 5S rDNA and short interspersed elements (SINE)-like mobile elements. Given that we conclude in grasshoppers that the U1 snDNA had evolved under the birth-and-death model and that its intragenomic spread might be related with mobile elements. PMID:25248465

  12. THE BURST CLUSTER: DARK MATTER IN A CLUSTER MERGER ASSOCIATED WITH THE SHORT GAMMA-RAY BURST, GRB 050509B

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dahle, H.; Sarazin, C. L.; Lopez, L. A.; Kouveliotou, C.; Patel, S. K.; Rol, E.; Van der Horst, A. J.; Wijers, R. A. M. J.; Fynbo, J.; Michałowski, M. J.; Burrows, D. N.; Grupe, D.; Gehrels, N.; Ramirez-Ruiz, E.

    2013-01-01

    We have identified a merging galaxy cluster with evidence of two distinct subclusters. The X-ray and optical data suggest that the subclusters are presently moving away from each other after closest approach. This cluster merger was discovered from observations of the first well-localized short-duration gamma-ray burst (GRB), GRB 050509B. The Swift/Burst Alert Telescope error position of the source is coincident with a cluster of galaxies ZwCl 1234.0+02916, while the subsequent Swift/X-Ray Telescope localization of the X-ray afterglow found the GRB coincident with 2MASX J12361286+2858580, a giant red elliptical galaxy in the cluster. Deep multi-epoch optical images were obtained in this field to constrain the evolution of the GRB afterglow, including a total of 27,480 s exposure in the F814W band with Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys, among the deepest imaging ever obtained toward a known galaxy cluster in a single passband. We perform a weak gravitational lensing analysis based on these data, including mapping of the total mass distribution of the merger system with high spatial resolution. When combined with Chandra X-ray Observatory Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer and Swift/XRT observations, we are able to investigate the dynamical state of the merger to better understand the nature of the dark matter component. Our weak gravitational lensing measurements reveal a separation of the X-ray centroid of the western subcluster from the center of the mass and galaxy light distributions, which is somewhat similar to that of the famous 'Bullet cluster', and we conclude that this 'Burst cluster' adds another candidate to the previously known merger systems for determining the nature of dark matter, as well as for studying the environment of a short GRB. Finally, we discuss potential connections between the cluster dynamical state and/or matter composition, and compact object mergers, which is currently the leading model for the origin of short GRBs

  13. THE BURST CLUSTER: DARK MATTER IN A CLUSTER MERGER ASSOCIATED WITH THE SHORT GAMMA-RAY BURST, GRB 050509B

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dahle, H. [Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics, University of Oslo, P.O. Box 1029, Blindern, NO-0315 Oslo (Norway); Sarazin, C. L. [Department of Astronomy, University of Virginia, P.O. Box 400325, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4325 (United States); Lopez, L. A. [MIT-Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, 37-664H, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); Kouveliotou, C. [Space Science Office, ZP12, NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL 35812 (United States); Patel, S. K. [Optical Sciences Corporation, 6767 Old Madison Pike, Suite 650, Huntsville, AL 35806 (United States); Rol, E.; Van der Horst, A. J.; Wijers, R. A. M. J. [Astronomical Institute ' Anton Pannekoek' , University of Amsterdam, Kruislaan 403, 1098 SJ Amsterdam (Netherlands); Fynbo, J.; Michalowski, M. J. [Dark Cosmology Centre, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Juliane Maries vej 30, DK-2100 Copenhagen (Denmark); Burrows, D. N.; Grupe, D. [Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pennsylvania State University, 525 Davey Laboratory, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Gehrels, N. [NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States); Ramirez-Ruiz, E., E-mail: hdahle@astro.uio.no [Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California Santa Cruz, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95060 (United States)

    2013-07-20

    We have identified a merging galaxy cluster with evidence of two distinct subclusters. The X-ray and optical data suggest that the subclusters are presently moving away from each other after closest approach. This cluster merger was discovered from observations of the first well-localized short-duration gamma-ray burst (GRB), GRB 050509B. The Swift/Burst Alert Telescope error position of the source is coincident with a cluster of galaxies ZwCl 1234.0+02916, while the subsequent Swift/X-Ray Telescope localization of the X-ray afterglow found the GRB coincident with 2MASX J12361286+2858580, a giant red elliptical galaxy in the cluster. Deep multi-epoch optical images were obtained in this field to constrain the evolution of the GRB afterglow, including a total of 27,480 s exposure in the F814W band with Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys, among the deepest imaging ever obtained toward a known galaxy cluster in a single passband. We perform a weak gravitational lensing analysis based on these data, including mapping of the total mass distribution of the merger system with high spatial resolution. When combined with Chandra X-ray Observatory Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer and Swift/XRT observations, we are able to investigate the dynamical state of the merger to better understand the nature of the dark matter component. Our weak gravitational lensing measurements reveal a separation of the X-ray centroid of the western subcluster from the center of the mass and galaxy light distributions, which is somewhat similar to that of the famous 'Bullet cluster', and we conclude that this 'Burst cluster' adds another candidate to the previously known merger systems for determining the nature of dark matter, as well as for studying the environment of a short GRB. Finally, we discuss potential connections between the cluster dynamical state and/or matter composition, and compact object mergers, which is currently the leading model for the

  14. Clusters in nuclei. Vol. 1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Beck, Christian

    2010-01-01

    Following the pioneering discovery of alpha clustering and of molecular resonances, the field of nuclear clustering is presently one of the domains of heavy-ion nuclear physics facing both the greatest challenges and opportunities. After many summer schools and workshops, in particular over the last decade, the community of nuclear molecular physics decided to team up in producing a comprehensive collection of lectures and tutorial reviews covering the field. This first volume, gathering seven extensive lectures, covers the follow topics: - Cluster Radioactivity - Cluster States and Mean Field Theories - Alpha Clustering and Alpha Condensates - Clustering in Neutron-rich Nuclei - Di-neutron Clustering - Collective Clusterization in Nuclei - Giant Nuclear Molecules By promoting new ideas and developments while retaining a pedagogical nature of presentation throughout, these lectures will both serve as a reference and as advanced teaching material for future courses and schools in the fields of nuclear physics and nuclear astrophysics. (orig.)

  15. Radiolabelled monoclonal antibodies: magic bullets for colorectal carcinoma

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Slade, Linda

    1997-01-01

    Radiolabelled monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs) have been heralded as highly specific detection agents for many types of tumours. However, because of the many problems that have been associated with the use of these agents, their development and successes did not meet expectations. This paper discusses the use of radiolabelled MoAbs in the diagnosis and staging of colorectal cancer, the type of antibodies and radionuclides investigated over the past thirty years, and the advantages and disadvantages of each. An attempt is made to define the role of radioimmunoscintigraphy (RIS) in the investigation and management of patients with colorectal cancer. It appears that this technique can improve tumour detection, especially when used in conjunction with other imaging modalities. High sensitivities and specificities have been found using radio-labelled MoAbs for investigation of colorectal carcinoma. However, the author estimates there are a number of areas that require further research and improvement before naming radiolabelled MoAbs as 'magic bullets' for colorectal cancer. 8 refs., 3 tabs

  16. Self-diffusion dynamic behavior of atomic clusters on Re(0 0 0 1) surface

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu Fusheng [Department of Applied Physics, Hunan University, Changsha 410082 (China); Hu Wangyu, E-mail: wangyuhu2001cn@yahoo.com.cn [Department of Applied Physics, Hunan University, Changsha 410082 (China); Deng Huiqiu; Luo Wenhua; Xiao Shifang [Department of Applied Physics, Hunan University, Changsha 410082 (China); Yang Jianyu [Department of Maths and Physics, Hunan Institute of Engineering, Xiangtan 411104 (China)

    2009-08-15

    Using molecular dynamics simulations and a modified analytic embedded atom potential, the self-diffusion dynamics of rhenium atomic clusters up to seven atoms on Re(0 0 0 1) surface have been studied in the temperature ranges from 600 K to 1900 K. The simulation time varies from 20 ns to 200 ns according to the cluster sizes and the temperature. The heptamer and trimer are more stable comparing to other neighboring non-compact clusters. The diffusion coefficients of clusters are derived from the mean square displacement of cluster's mass-center, and diffusion prefactors D{sub 0} and activation energies E{sub a} are derived from the Arrhenius relation. It is found that the Arrhenius relation of the adatom can be divided into two parts at different temperature range. The activation energy of clusters increases with the increasing of the atom number in clusters. The prefactor of the heptamer is 2-3 orders of magnitude higher than a usual prefactor because of a large number of nonequivalent diffusion processes. The trimer and heptamer are the nuclei at different temperature range according to the nucleation theory.

  17. THE ABUNDANCE OF BULLET GROUPS IN ΛCDM

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fernández-Trincado, J. G.; Forero-Romero, J. E. [Departamento de Física, Universidad de los Andes, Cra. 1 No. 18A-10, Edificio Ip, Bogotá (Colombia); Foex, G.; Motta, V. [Instituto de Física y Astronomía, Universidad de Valparaíso, Avda. Gran Bretaña 1111, Playa Ancha, Valparaíso 2360102 (Chile); Verdugo, T., E-mail: jfernandez@obs-besancon.fr, E-mail: je.forero@uniandes.edu.co [Centro de Investigaciones de Astronomía, AP 264, Mérida 5101-A (Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of)

    2014-06-01

    We estimate the expected distribution of displacements between the two dominant dark matter (DM) peaks (DM-DM displacements) and between the DM and gaseous baryon peak (DM-gas displacements) in DM halos with masses larger than 10{sup 13} h {sup –1} M {sub ☉}. As a benchmark, we use the observation of SL2S J08544–0121, which is the lowest mass system (1.0 × 10{sup 14} h {sup –1} M {sub ☉}) observed so far, featuring a bi-modal DM distribution with a dislocated gas component. We find that (50 ± 10)% of the DM halos with circular velocities in the range 300-700 km s{sup –1} (groups) show DM-DM displacements equal to or larger than 186 ± 30 h {sup –1} kpc as observed in SL2S J08544–0121. For DM halos with circular velocities larger than 700 km s{sup –1} (clusters) this fraction rises to (70 ± 10)%. Using the same simulation, we estimate the DM-gas displacements and find that 0.1%-1.0% of the groups should present separations equal to or larger than 87 ± 14 h {sup –1} kpc, corresponding to our observational benchmark; for clusters, this fraction rises to (7 ± 3)%, consistent with previous studies of DM to baryon separations. Considering both constraints on the DM-DM and DM-gas displacements, we find that the number density of groups similar to SL2S J08544–0121 is ∼6.0 × 10{sup –7} Mpc{sup –3}, three times larger than the estimated value for clusters. These results open up the possibility for a new statistical test of ΛCDM by looking for DM-gas displacements in low mass clusters and groups.

  18. THE ATACAMA COSMOLOGY TELESCOPE: PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF SUNYAEV-ZEL'DOVICH EFFECT CLUSTERS ON THE CELESTIAL EQUATOR {sup ,}

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Menanteau, Felipe; Hughes, John P. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Rutgers University, 136 Frelinghuysen Road, Piscataway, NJ 08854 (United States); Sifon, Cristobal; Barrientos, L. Felipe; Duenner, Rolando; Infante, Leopoldo [Departamento de Astronomia y Astrofisica, Facultad de Fisica, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Casilla 306, Santiago 22 (Chile); Battaglia, Nicholas [McWilliams Center for Cosmology, Department of Physics, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 (United States); Bond, J. Richard; Hajian, Amir; Hincks, Adam D. [Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3H8 (Canada); Crichton, Devin; Gralla, Megan; Marriage, Tobias A. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218-2686 (United States); Das, Sudeep [High Energy Physics Division, Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 S Cass Avenue, Lemont, IL 60439 (United States); Devlin, Mark J.; Dicker, Simon [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, 209 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (United States); Hasselfield, Matthew [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4 (Canada); Hilton, Matt [Astrophysics and Cosmology Research Unit, School of Mathematics, Statistics and Computer Science, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban (South Africa); Kosowsky, Arthur [Physics and Astronomy Department, University of Pittsburgh, 100 Allen Hall, 3941 O' Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 (United States); Marsden, Danica [Department of Physics, University of California Santa Barbara, CA 93106 (United States); and others

    2013-03-01

    We present the optical and X-ray properties of 68 galaxy clusters selected via the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect at 148 GHz by the Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT). Our sample, from an area of 504 deg{sup 2} centered on the celestial equator, is divided into two regions. The main region uses 270 deg{sup 2} of the ACT survey that overlaps with the co-added ugriz imaging from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) over Stripe 82 plus additional near-infrared pointed observations with the Apache Point Observatory 3.5 m telescope. We confirm a total of 49 clusters to z Almost-Equal-To 1.3, of which 22 (all at z > 0.55) are new discoveries. For the second region, the regular-depth SDSS imaging allows us to confirm 19 more clusters up to z Almost-Equal-To 0.7, of which 10 systems are new. We present the optical richness, photometric redshifts, and separation between the SZ position and the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG). We find no significant offset between the cluster SZ centroid and BCG location and a weak correlation between optical richness and SZ-derived mass. We also present X-ray fluxes and luminosities from the ROSAT All Sky Survey which confirm that this is a massive sample. One of the newly discovered clusters, ACT-CL J0044.4+0113 at z = 1.1 (photometric), has an integrated XMM-Newton X-ray temperature of kT{sub X} = 7.9 {+-} 1.0 keV and combined mass of M {sub 200a} = 8.2{sup +3.3} {sub -2.5} Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 14} h {sup -1} {sub 70} M {sub Sun }, placing it among the most massive and X-ray-hot clusters known at redshifts beyond z = 1. We also highlight the optically rich cluster ACT-CL J2327.4-0204 (RCS2 2327) at z = 0.705 (spectroscopic) as the most significant detection of the whole equatorial sample with a Chandra-derived mass of M {sub 200a} = 1.9{sup +0.6} {sub -0.4} Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 15} h {sup -1} {sub 70} M {sub Sun }, placing it in the ranks of the most massive known clusters like El Gordo and the Bullet Cluster.

  19. BRIGHTEST CLUSTER GALAXIES AND CORE GAS DENSITY IN REXCESS CLUSTERS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haarsma, Deborah B.; Leisman, Luke; Donahue, Megan; Bruch, Seth; Voit, G. Mark; Boehringer, Hans; Pratt, Gabriel W.; Pierini, Daniele; Croston, Judith H.; Arnaud, Monique

    2010-01-01

    We investigate the relationship between brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) and their host clusters using a sample of nearby galaxy clusters from the Representative XMM-Newton Cluster Structure Survey. The sample was imaged with the Southern Observatory for Astrophysical Research in R band to investigate the mass of the old stellar population. Using a metric radius of 12 h -1 kpc, we found that the BCG luminosity depends weakly on overall cluster mass as L BCG ∝ M 0.18±0.07 cl , consistent with previous work. We found that 90% of the BCGs are located within 0.035 r 500 of the peak of the X-ray emission, including all of the cool core (CC) clusters. We also found an unexpected correlation between the BCG metric luminosity and the core gas density for non-cool-core (non-CC) clusters, following a power law of n e ∝ L 2.7±0.4 BCG (where n e is measured at 0.008 r 500 ). The correlation is not easily explained by star formation (which is weak in non-CC clusters) or overall cluster mass (which is not correlated with core gas density). The trend persists even when the BCG is not located near the peak of the X-ray emission, so proximity is not necessary. We suggest that, for non-CC clusters, this correlation implies that the same process that sets the central entropy of the cluster gas also determines the central stellar density of the BCG, and that this underlying physical process is likely to be mergers.

  20. Combat-related intradural gunshot wound to the thoracic spine: significant improvement and neurologic recovery following bullet removal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Louwes, Thijs M; Ward, William H; Lee, Kendall H; Freedman, Brett A

    2015-02-01

    The vast majority of combat-related penetrating spinal injuries from gunshot wounds result in severe or complete neurological deficit. Treatment is based on neurological status, the presence of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) fistulas, and local effects of any retained fragment(s). We present a case of a 46-year-old male who sustained a spinal gunshot injury from a 7.62-mm AK-47 round that became lodged within the subarachnoid space at T9-T10. He immediately suffered complete motor and sensory loss. By 24-48 hours post-injury, he had recovered lower extremity motor function fully but continued to have severe sensory loss (posterior cord syndrome). On post-injury day 2, he was evacuated from the combat theater and underwent a T9 laminectomy, extraction of the bullet, and dural laceration repair. At surgery, the traumatic durotomy was widened and the bullet, which was laying on the dorsal surface of the spinal cord, was removed. The dura was closed in a water-tight fashion and fibrin glue was applied. Postoperatively, the patient made a significant but incomplete neurological recovery. His stocking-pattern numbness and sub-umbilical searing dysthesia improved. The spinal canal was clear of the foreign body and he had no persistent CSF leak. Postoperative magnetic resonance imaging of the spine revealed contusion of the spinal cord at the T9 level. Early removal of an intra-canicular bullet in the setting of an incomplete spinal cord injury can lead to significant neurological recovery following even high-velocity and/or high-caliber gunshot wounds. However, this case does not speak to, and prior experience does not demonstrate, significant neurological benefit in the setting of a complete injury.

  1. Medical Surveillance Monthly Report (MSMR). Volume 22, Number 1, February 2015

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-02-01

    bullet wound? a. Head or neck b. Rest of body (4) Other injury (e.g., sports injury, accidental fall , etc.)? If yes to any of the above, please... pregnancy loss and preterm labor.1,2 Mumps virus spreads easily from per- son to person through inhalation of air- borne saliva droplets or from

  2. HIV-TRACE (Transmission Cluster Engine): a tool for large scale molecular epidemiology of HIV-1 and other rapidly evolving pathogens.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kosakovsky Pond, Sergei L; Weaver, Steven; Leigh Brown, Andrew J; Wertheim, Joel O

    2018-01-31

    In modern applications of molecular epidemiology, genetic sequence data are routinely used to identify clusters of transmission in rapidly evolving pathogens, most notably HIV-1. Traditional 'shoeleather' epidemiology infers transmission clusters by tracing chains of partners sharing epidemiological connections (e.g., sexual contact). Here, we present a computational tool for identifying a molecular transmission analog of such clusters: HIV-TRACE (TRAnsmission Cluster Engine). HIV-TRACE implements an approach inspired by traditional epidemiology, by identifying chains of partners whose viral genetic relatedness imply direct or indirect epidemiological connections. Molecular transmission clusters are constructed using codon-aware pairwise alignment to a reference sequence followed by pairwise genetic distance estimation among all sequences. This approach is computationally tractable and is capable of identifying HIV-1 transmission clusters in large surveillance databases comprising tens or hundreds of thousands of sequences in near real time, i.e., on the order of minutes to hours. HIV-TRACE is available at www.hivtrace.org and from github.com/veg/hivtrace, along with the accompanying result visualization module from github.com/veg/hivtrace-viz. Importantly, the approach underlying HIV-TRACE is not limited to the study of HIV-1 and can be applied to study outbreaks and epidemics of other rapidly evolving pathogens. © The Author 2018. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  3. IDENTIFICATION OF THE LITHIUM DEPLETION BOUNDARY AND AGE OF THE SOUTHERN OPEN CLUSTER BLANCO 1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cargile, P. A.; James, D. J.; Jeffries, R. D.

    2010-01-01

    We present results from a spectroscopic study of the very low mass members of the Southern open cluster Blanco 1 using the Gemini-N telescope. We obtained intermediate resolution (R ∼ 4400) GMOS spectra for 15 cluster candidate members with I ∼ 14-20 mag, and employed a series of membership criteria-proximity to the cluster's sequence in an I/I - K s color-magnitude diagram (CMD), kinematics agreeing with the cluster systemic motion, magnetic activity as a youth indicator-to classify 10 of these objects as probable cluster members. For these objects, we searched for the presence of the Li I 6708 A feature to identify the lithium depletion boundary (LDB) in Blanco 1. The I/I - K s CMD shows a clear mass segregation in the Li distribution along the cluster sequence; namely, all higher mass stars are found to be Li poor, while lower mass stars are found to be Li rich. The division between Li-poor and Li-rich (i.e., the LDB) in Blanco 1 is found at I = 18.78 ± 0.24 and I - K s = 3.05 ± 0.10. Using current pre-main-sequence evolutionary models, we determine an LDB age of 132 ± 24 Myr. Comparing our derived LDB age to upper-main-sequence isochrone ages for Blanco 1, as well as for other open clusters with identified LDBs, we find good chronometric consistency when using stellar evolution models that incorporate a moderate degree of convective core overshoot.

  4. LBT/LUCIFER view of star-forming galaxies in the cluster 7C 1756+6520 at z ˜ 1.4

    Science.gov (United States)

    Magrini, Laura; Sommariva, Veronica; Cresci, Giovanni; Sani, Eleonora; Galametz, Audrey; Mannucci, Filippo; Petropoulou, Vasiliki; Fumana, Marco

    2012-10-01

    Galaxy clusters are key places to study the contribution of nature (i.e. mass and morphology) and nurture (i.e. environment) in the formation and evolution of galaxies. Recently, a number of clusters at z > 1, i.e. corresponding to the first epochs of the cluster formation, have been discovered and confirmed spectroscopically. We present new observations obtained with the LBT Near Infrared Spectroscopic Utility with Camera and Integral Field Unit for Extragalactic Research (LUCIFER) spectrograph at Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) of a sample of star-forming galaxies associated with a large-scale structure around the radio galaxy 7C 1756+6520 at z = 1.42. Combining our spectroscopic data and the literature photometric data, we derived some of the properties of these galaxies: star formation rate, metallicity and stellar mass. With the aim of analysing the effect of the cluster environment on galaxy evolution, we have located the galaxies in the plane of the so-called fundamental metallicity relation (FMR), which is known not to evolve with redshift up to z = 2.5 for field galaxies, but it is still unexplored in rich environments at low and high redshifts. We found that the properties of the galaxies in the cluster 7C 1756+6520 are compatible with the FMR which suggests that the effect of the environment on galaxy metallicity at this early epoch of cluster formation is marginal. As a side study, we also report the spectroscopic analysis of a bright active galactic nucleus, belonging to the cluster, which shows a significant outflow of gas.

  5. Properties of an ionised-cluster beam from a vaporised-cluster ion source

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takagi, T.; Yamada, I.; Sasaki, A.

    1978-01-01

    A new type of ion source vaporised-metal cluster ion source, has been developed for deposition and epitaxy. A cluster consisting of 10 2 to 10 3 atoms coupled loosely together is formed by adiabatic expansion ejecting the vapour of materials into a high-vacuum region through the nozzle of a heated crucible. The clusters are ionised by electron bombardment and accelerated with neutral clusters toward a substrate. In this paper, mechanisms of cluster formation experimental results of the cluster size (atoms/cluster) and its distribution, and characteristics of the cluster ion beams are reported. The size is calculated from the kinetic equation E = (1/2)mNVsub(ej) 2 , where E is the cluster beam energy, Vsub(ej) is the ejection velocity, m is the mass of atom and N is the cluster size. The energy and the velocity of the cluster are measured by an electrostatic 127 0 energy analyser and a rotating disc system, respectively. The cluster size obtained for Ag is about 5 x 10 2 to 2 x 10 3 atoms. The retarding potential method is used to confirm the results for Ag. The same dependence on cluster size for metals such as Ag, Cu and Pb has been obtained in previous experiments. In the cluster state the cluster ion beam is easily produced by electron bombardment. About 50% of ionised clusters are obtained under typical operation conditions, because of the large ionisation cross sections of the clusters. To obtain a uniform spatial distribution, the ionising electrode system is also discussed. The new techniques are termed ionised-cluster beam deposition (ICBD) and epitaxy (ICBE). (author)

  6. When Do SMEs Benefit from E-Commerce in an Industrial Cluster?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hugger, Ada Scupola

    2005-01-01

    The goal of this paper is to explore how ICT networks may be used in industrial clusters, especially by SMEs. The two primary research questions addressed are as follows: 1) How do firms embedded in a cluster use public ICT infrastructures such as broadband access to the Internet? 2) Under what c...... conditions do firms in a cluster, especially SMEs, benefit from Internet usage?...

  7. Westerlund 1: monolithic formation of a starburst cluster

    Science.gov (United States)

    Negueruela, Ignacio; Clark, J. Simon; Ritchie, Ben; Goodwin, Simon

    2015-08-01

    Westerlund 1 is in all likelihood the most massive young cluster in the Milky Way, with a mass on the order of 105 Msol. We have been observing its massive star population for ten years, measuring radial velocity changes for a substantial fraction of its OB stars and evolved supergiants. The properties of the evolved population are entirely consisting with a single burst of star formation, in excellent agreement with the results of studies based on the lower-mass population.Here we will present two new studies of the cluster: 1) A direct measurement of its average radial velocity and velocity dispersion based on individual measurements for several dozen stars with constant radial velocity and 2) A search for massive stars in its immediate neighbourhood using multi-object spectroscopy.The results of these two studies show that Westerlund 1 is decidedly subvirial and has a systemic radial velocity significantly different from that of nearby gas, which was assumed to provide a dynamical distance by previous authors. Moreover, the dynamical distance is inconsistent with the properties of the high-mass stellar population. In addition, we find that the cluster is completely isolated, with hardly any massive star in its vicinity that could be associated in terms of distance modulus or radial velocity. The cluster halo does not extend much further than five parsec away from the centre. All these properties are very unusual among starburst clusters in the Local Universe, which tend to form in the context of large star-forming regions.Westerlund 1 is thus the best example we have of a starburst cluster formed monolithically.

  8. Completion Report for Well Cluster ER-6-1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bechtel Nevada

    2004-10-01

    Well Cluster ER-6-1 was constructed for the U.S. Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration Nevada Site Office in support of the Nevada Environmental Restoration Division at the Nevada Test Site, Nye County, Nevada. This work was initiated as part of the Groundwater Characterization Project, now known as the Underground Test Area Project. The well cluster is located in southeastern Yucca Flat. Detailed lithologic descriptions with stratigraphic assignments for Well Cluster ER-6-1 are included in this report. These are based on composite drill cuttings collected every 3 meters and conventional core samples taken below 639 meters, supplemented by geophysical log data. Detailed petrographic, chemical, and mineralogical studies of rock samples were conducted on 11 samples to resolve complex interrelationships between several of the Tertiary tuff units. Additionally, paleontological analyses by the U.S. Geological Survey confirmed the stratigraphic assignments below 539 meters within the Paleozoic sedimentary section. All three wells in the Well ER-6-1 cluster were drilled within the Quaternary and Tertiary alluvium section, the Tertiary volcanic section, and into the Paleozoic sedimentary section.

  9. BiCluE - Exact and heuristic algorithms for weighted bi-cluster editing of biomedical data

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sun, Peng; Guo, Jiong; Baumbach, Jan

    2013-01-01

    to solve the weighted bi-cluster editing problem. It implements (1) an exact algorithm based on fixed-parameter tractability and (2) a polynomial-time greedy heuristics based on solving the hardest part, edge deletions, first. We evaluated its performance on artificial graphs. Afterwards we exemplarily...... problem. BiCluE as well as the supplementary results are available online at http://biclue.mpi-inf.mpg.de webcite....

  10. Effects of incident cluster size, substrate temperature, and incident energy on bombardment of Ni clusters onto Cu (0 0 1) surface studied using molecular dynamics simulation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin, Shiang-Jiun; Wu, Cheng-Da; Fang, Te-Hua; Chen, Guan-Hung

    2012-01-01

    The bombardment process of a Ni cluster onto a Cu (0 0 1) surface is studied using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations based on the tight-binding second-moment approximation (TB-SMA) many-body potential. The effects of incident cluster size, substrate temperature, and incident energy are evaluated in terms of molecular trajectories, kinetic energy, stress, self-diffusion coefficient, and sputtering yield. The simulation results clearly show that the penetration depth and Cu surface damage increase with increasing incident cluster size for a given incident energy per atom. The self-diffusion coefficient and the penetration depth of a cluster significantly increase with increasing substrate temperature. An incident cluster can be scattered into molecules or atoms that become embedded in the surface after incidence. When the incident energy is increased, the number of volcano-like defects and the penetration depth increase. A high sputtering yield can be obtained by increasing the incident energy at high temperature. The sputtering yield significantly increases with cluster size when the incident energy is above 5 eV/atom.

  11. Gaia Data Release 1 Open cluster astrometry: performance, limitations, and future prospects

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    van Leeuwen, F.; Vallenari, A.; Jordi, C.; Lindegren, L.; Bastian, U.; Prusti, T.; de Bruijne, J.H.J.; Brown, A.G.A.; Babusiaux, C.; Bailer-Jones, C.A.L.; Fuchs, Jan; Koubský, Pavel; Votruba, Viktor

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 601, May (2017), A19/1-A19/65 E-ISSN 1432-0746 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) LG15010 Grant - others:ESA(XE) ESA-PECS project No. 98058 Institutional support: RVO:67985815 Keywords : astrometry * open clusters and associations * proper motion and parallax Subject RIV: BN - Astronomy , Celestial Mechanics, Astrophysics OBOR OECD: Astronomy (including astrophysics,space science) Impact factor: 5.014, year: 2016

  12. Detection of lead nanoparticles in game meat by single particle ICP-MS following use of lead-containing bullets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kollander, Barbro; Widemo, Fredrik; Ågren, Erik; Larsen, Erik H; Loeschner, Katrin

    2017-03-01

    This study investigated whether game meat may contain nanoparticles of lead from ammunition. Lead nanoparticles in the range 40 to 750 nm were detected by ICP-MS in single particle mode in game shot with lead-containing bullets. The median diameter of the detected nanoparticles was around 60 nm. The particle mass concentration ranged from 290 to 340 ng/g meat and the particle number concentrations from 27 to 50 million particles/g meat. The size limit of detection strongly depended on the level of dissolved lead and was in the range of 40 to 80 nm. In game meat sampled more than 10 cm away from the wound channel, no lead particles with a diameter larger than 40 nm were detected. In addition to dissolved lead in meat that originated from particulates, the presence of lead nano particles in game meat represents a hitherto unattended source of lead with a largely unknown toxicological impact to humans. Graphical Abstract Detection of lead nanoparticles in game meat by single particle ICP-MS following use of leadcontaining bullets.

  13. The Atacama Cosmology Telescope: ACT-CL J0102-4215 "El Gordo," a Massive Merging Cluster at Redshift 0.87

    Science.gov (United States)

    Menanteau, Felipe; Hughes, John Pl; Baker, Andrew J.; Sifon, Cristobal; Gonzalez, Jorge; Infante, Leopoldo; Barrientos, L. Felipe; Hilton, Matt; Das, Sudeep; Spergel, David N.; hide

    2011-01-01

    We present a detailed analysis from new multi-wavelength observations of the exceptional galaxy cluster ACT-CL J0102-4915, likely the most massive, hottest, most X-ray luminous and brightest Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect cluster known at redshifts greater than 0.6. The Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) collaboration discovered ACT-CL J0102-4915 as the most significant Sunyaev-Zeldovich (SZ) decrement in a sky survey area of 755 square degrees. Our VLT/FORS2 spectra of 89 member galaxies yield a cluster redshift, z = 0.870, and velocity dispersion, sigma(gal) +/- 1321 106 km s-1. Our Chandra observations reveal a hot and X-ray luminous system with an integrated temperature of T(X) = 14:5 +/- 0:1 keV and 0.5 2.0 keV band luminosity of L(X) = (2:19 0:11) 1045 h(exp -2)70erg s-1. We obtain several statistically consistent cluster mass estimates; using empirical mass scaling relations with velocity dispersion, X-ray Y(X) , and integrated SZ distortion, we estimate a cluster mass of M(200) = (2:16 +/- 0:32) 10(exp 15) h(exp-1) 70M compared to the Sun. We constrain the stellar content of the cluster to be less than 1% of the total mass, using Spitzer IRAC and optical imaging. The Chandra and VLT/FORS2 optical data also reveal that ACT-CL J0102-4915 is undergoing a major merger between components with a mass ratio of approximately 2 to 1. The X-ray data show significant temperature variations from a low of 6:6 +/- 0:7 keV at the merging low-entropy, high-metallicity, cool core to a high of 22 +/- 6 keV. We also see a wake in the X-ray surface brightness and deprojected gas density caused by the passage of one cluster through the other from which we estimate a merger speed of around 1300 km s(exp -1) for an assumed merger timescale of 1 Gyr. ACTCL J0102-4915 is possibly a high-redshift analog of the famous Bullet Cluster. Such a massive cluster at this redshift is rare, although consistent with the standard CDM cosmology in the lower part of its allowed mass range. Massive

  14. Incidence rate and spatio-temporal clustering of type 1 diabetes in Santiago, Chile, from 1997 to 1998 Taxa de incidência e agrupamento espaço-temporal de diabetes tipo 1 em Santiago, Chile, de 1997 a 1998

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    JL Santos

    2001-02-01

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To estimate the incidence rate of type 1 diabetes in the urban area of Santiago, Chile, from March 21, 1997 to March 20, 1998, and to assess the spatio-temporal clustering of cases during that period. METHODS: All sixty-one incident cases were located temporally (day of diagnosis and spatially (place of residence in the area of study. Knox's method was used to assess spatio-temporal clustering of incident cases. RESULTS: The overall incidence rate of type 1 diabetes was 4.11 cases per 100,000 children aged less than 15 years per year (95% confidence interval: 3.06--5.14. The incidence rate seems to have increased since the last estimate of the incidence calculated for the years 1986--1992 in the metropolitan region of Santiago. Different combinations of space-time intervals have been evaluated to assess spatio-temporal clustering. The smallest p-value was found for the combination of critical distances of 750 meters and 60 days (uncorrected p-value = 0.048. CONCLUSIONS: Although these are preliminary results regarding space-time clustering in Santiago, exploratory analysis of the data method would suggest a possible aggregation of incident cases in space-time coordinates.OBJETIVO: Estimar a taxa de incidência de diabetes tipo 1 na área urbana de Santiago, Chile, entre os dias 21 de março de 1997 e 20 de março 1998, assim como a avaliação do agrupamento espaço-temporal dos casos incidentes no período. MÉTODOS: Foram localizados 61 casos incidentes no tempo (dia do diagnóstico e no espaço (lugar de residência na área do estudo. O método de Knox foi usado para avaliar o agrupamento dos casos no espaço e no tempo. RESULTADOS: A taxa de diabetes tipo 1 foi estimada em 4,11 casos por 100.000 menores de 15 anos por ano (Intervalo de confiança 95%: 3,06 -- 5,14. Essa taxa de incidência parece ter aumentado desde a última estimativa realizada na região metropolitana de Santiago, nos anos 1986-1992. Foram constru

  15. GEMINI/GeMS Observations Unveil the Structure of the Heavily Obscured Globular Cluster Liller 1.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saracino, S.; Dalessandro, E.; Ferraro, F. R.; Lanzoni, B.; Geisler, D.; Mauro, F.; Villanova, S.; Moni Bidin, C.; Miocchi, P.; Massari, D.

    2015-06-01

    By exploiting the exceptional high-resolution capabilities of the near-IR camera GSAOI combined with the Gemini Multi-Conjugate Adaptive System at the GEMINI South Telescope, we investigated the structural and physical properties of the heavily obscured globular cluster Liller 1 in the Galactic bulge. We have obtained the deepest and most accurate color-magnitude diagram published so far for this cluster, reaching {{K}s}˜ 19 (below the main-sequence turnoff level). We used these data to redetermine the center of gravity of the system, finding that it is located about 2.″2 southeast from the literature value. We also built new star density and surface brightness profiles for the cluster and rederived its main structural and physical parameters (scale radii, concentration parameter, central mass density, total mass). We find that Liller 1 is significantly less concentrated (concentration parameter c=1.74) and less extended (tidal radius {{r}t}=298\\prime\\prime and core radius {{r}c}=5\\buildrel{\\prime\\prime}\\over{.} 39) than previously thought. By using these newly determined structural parameters, we estimated the mass of Liller 1 to be {{M}tot}=2.3+0.3-0.1× {{10}6} {{M}⊙ } ({{M}tot}=1.5+0.2-0.1× {{10}6} {{M}⊙ } for a Kroupa initial mass function), which is comparable to that of the most massive clusters in the Galaxy (ω Centari and Terzan 5). Also, Liller 1 has the second-highest collision rate (after Terzan 5) among all star clusters in the Galaxy, thus confirming that it is an ideal environment for the formation of collisional objects (such as millisecond pulsars). Based on observations obtained at the Gemini Observatory, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under a cooperative agreement with the NSF on behalf of the Gemini partnership: the National Science Foundation (United States), the National Research Council (Canada), CONICYT (Chile), the Australian Research Council (Australia), Ministério da

  16. Dynamics, Chemical Abundances, and ages of Globular Clusters in the Virgo Cluster of Galaxies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guhathakurta, Puragra; NGVS Collaboration

    2018-01-01

    We present a study of the dynamics, metallicities, and ages of globular clusters (GCs) in the Next Generation Virgo cluster Survey (NGVS), a deep, multi-band (u, g, r, i, z, and Ks), wide-field (104 deg2) imaging survey carried out using the 3.6-m Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope and MegaCam imager. GC candidates were selected from the NGVS survey using photometric and image morphology criteria and these were followed up with deep, medium-resolution, multi-object spectroscopy using the Keck II 10-m telescope and DEIMOS spectrograph. The primary spectroscopic targets were candidate GC satellites of dwarf elliptical (dE) and ultra-diffuse galaxies (UDGs) in the Virgo cluster. While many objects were confirmed as GC satellites of Virgo dEs and UDGs, many turned out to be non-satellites based on their radial velocity and/or positional mismatch any identifiable Virgo cluster galaxy. We have used a combination of spectral characteristics (e.g., presence of absorption vs. emission lines), new Gaussian mixture modeling of radial velocity and sky position data, and a new extreme deconvolution analysis of ugrizKs photometry and image morphology, to classify all the objects in our sample into: (1) GC satellites of dE galaxies, (2) GC satellites of UDGs, (3) intra-cluster GCs (ICGCs) in the Virgo cluster, (4) GCs in the outer halo of the central cluster galaxy M87, (5) foreground Milky Way stars, and (6) distant background galaxies. We use these data to study the dynamics and dark matter content of dE and UDGs in the Virgo cluster, place important constraints on the nature of dE nuclei, and study the origin of ICGCs versus GCs in the remote M87 halo.We are grateful for financial support from the NSF and NASA/STScI.

  17. Test and Numerical Analysis for Penetration Residual Velocity of Bullet Considering Failure Strain Uncertainty of Composite Plates

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cha, Myungseok; Lee, Minhyung [Sejong Univ., Sejong (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-03-15

    The ballistic performance data of composite materials is distributed due to material inhomogeneity. In this paper, the uncertainty in residual velocity is obtained experimentally, and a method of predicting it is established numerically for the high-speed impact of a bullet into laminated composites. First, the failure strain distribution was obtained by conducting a tensile test using 10 specimens. Next, a ballistic impact test was carried out for the impact of a fragment-simulating projectile (FSP) bullet with 4ply ([0/90]s) and 8ply ([0/90/0/90]s) glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP) plates. Eighteen shots were made at the same impact velocity and the residual velocities were obtained. Finally, simulations were conducted to predict the residual velocities by using the failure strain distributions that were obtained from the tensile test. For this simulation, two impact velocities were chosen at 411.7m/s (4ply) and 592.5m/s (8ply). The simulation results show that the predicted residual velocities are in close agreement with test results. Additionally, the modeling of a composite plate with layered solid elements requires less calculation time than modeling with solid elements.

  18. PHAT STELLAR CLUSTER SURVEY. I. YEAR 1 CATALOG AND INTEGRATED PHOTOMETRY

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Johnson, L. Clifton; Dalcanton, Julianne J.; Fouesneau, Morgan; Hodge, Paul W.; Weisz, Daniel R.; Williams, Benjamin F.; Beerman, Lori C.; Seth, Anil C.; Caldwell, Nelson; Gouliermis, Dimitrios A.; Larsen, Søren S.; Olsen, Knut A. G.; San Roman, Izaskun; Sarajedini, Ata; Bianchi, Luciana; Dolphin, Andrew E.; Girardi, Léo; Guhathakurta, Puragra; Kalirai, Jason; Lang, Dustin

    2012-01-01

    The Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury (PHAT) survey is an ongoing Hubble Space Telescope (HST) multi-cycle program to obtain high spatial resolution imaging of one-third of the M31 disk at ultraviolet through near-infrared wavelengths. In this paper, we present the first installment of the PHAT stellar cluster catalog. When completed, the PHAT cluster catalog will be among the largest and most comprehensive surveys of resolved star clusters in any galaxy. The exquisite spatial resolution achieved with HST has allowed us to identify hundreds of new clusters that were previously inaccessible with existing ground-based surveys. We identify 601 clusters in the Year 1 sample, representing more than a factor of four increase over previous catalogs within the current survey area (390 arcmin 2 ). This work presents results derived from the first ∼25% of the survey data; we estimate that the final sample will include ∼2500 clusters. For the Year 1 objects, we present a catalog with positions, radii, and six-band integrated photometry. Along with a general characterization of the cluster luminosities and colors, we discuss the cluster luminosity function, the cluster size distributions, and highlight a number of individually interesting clusters found in the Year 1 search.

  19. PHAT STELLAR CLUSTER SURVEY. I. YEAR 1 CATALOG AND INTEGRATED PHOTOMETRY

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Johnson, L. Clifton; Dalcanton, Julianne J.; Fouesneau, Morgan; Hodge, Paul W.; Weisz, Daniel R.; Williams, Benjamin F.; Beerman, Lori C. [Department of Astronomy, University of Washington, Box 351580, Seattle, WA 98195 (United States); Seth, Anil C. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112 (United States); Caldwell, Nelson [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Gouliermis, Dimitrios A. [Institut fuer Theoretische Astrophysik, Zentrum fuer Astronomie der Universitaet Heidelberg, Albert-Ueberle-Strasse 2, D-69120 Heidelberg (Germany); Larsen, Soren S. [Department of Astrophysics, IMAPP, Radboud University Nijmegen, P.O. Box 9010, 6500 GL Nijmegen (Netherlands); Olsen, Knut A. G. [National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85719 (United States); San Roman, Izaskun; Sarajedini, Ata [Department of Astronomy, University of Florida, 211 Bryant Space Science Center, Gainesville, FL 32611-2055 (United States); Bianchi, Luciana [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States); Dolphin, Andrew E. [Raytheon Company, 1151 East Hermans Road, Tucson, AZ 85756 (United States); Girardi, Leo [Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova-INAF, Vicolo dell' Osservatorio 5, I-35122 Padova (Italy); Guhathakurta, Puragra [Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California Observatories/Lick Observatory, University of California, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 (United States); Kalirai, Jason [Space Telescope Science Institute, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States); Lang, Dustin, E-mail: lcjohnso@astro.washington.edu [Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States); and others

    2012-06-20

    The Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury (PHAT) survey is an ongoing Hubble Space Telescope (HST) multi-cycle program to obtain high spatial resolution imaging of one-third of the M31 disk at ultraviolet through near-infrared wavelengths. In this paper, we present the first installment of the PHAT stellar cluster catalog. When completed, the PHAT cluster catalog will be among the largest and most comprehensive surveys of resolved star clusters in any galaxy. The exquisite spatial resolution achieved with HST has allowed us to identify hundreds of new clusters that were previously inaccessible with existing ground-based surveys. We identify 601 clusters in the Year 1 sample, representing more than a factor of four increase over previous catalogs within the current survey area (390 arcmin{sup 2}). This work presents results derived from the first {approx}25% of the survey data; we estimate that the final sample will include {approx}2500 clusters. For the Year 1 objects, we present a catalog with positions, radii, and six-band integrated photometry. Along with a general characterization of the cluster luminosities and colors, we discuss the cluster luminosity function, the cluster size distributions, and highlight a number of individually interesting clusters found in the Year 1 search.

  20. Generalized vibrating potential model for collective excitations in spherical, deformed and superdeformed systems: (1) atomic nuclei, (2) metal clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nesterenko, V.O.; Kleinig, W.

    1995-01-01

    The self-consistent vibrating potential model (VPM) is extended for description of Eλ collective excitations in atomic nuclei and metal clusters with practically any kind of static deformation. The model is convenient for a qualitative analysis and provides the RPA accuracy of numerical calculations. The VPM is applied to study Eλ giant resonances in spherical metal clusters and deformed and superdeformed nuclei. It is shown that the deformation splitting of superdeformed nuclei results in a very complicated (''jungle-like'') structure of the resonances, which makes the experimental observation of E2 and E3 giant resonances in superdeformed nuclei quite problematic. Calculations of E1 giant resonance in spherical sodium clusters Na 8 , Na 20 and Na 40 are presented, as a test of the VPM in this field. The results are in qualitative agreement with the experimental data. (orig.)

  1. The Most Massive Star Clusters: Supermassive Globular Clusters or Dwarf Galaxy Nuclei?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harris, William

    2004-07-01

    Evidence is mounting that the most massive globular clusters, such as Omega Centauri and M31-G1, may be related to the recently discovered "Ultra-Compact Dwarfs" and the dense nuclei of dE, N galaxies. However, no systematic imaging investigation of these supermassive globular clusters - at the level of Omega Cen and beyond - has been done, and we do not know what fraction of them might bear the signatures {such as large effective radii or tidal tails} of having originated as dE nuclei. We propose to use the ACS/WFC to obtain deep images of 18 such clusters in NGC 5128 and M31, the two nearest rich globular cluster systems. These globulars are the richest star clusters that can be found in nature, the biggest of them reaching 10^7 Solar masses, and they are likely to represent the results of star formation under the densest and most extreme conditions known. Using the profiles of the clusters including their faint outer envelopes, we will carry out state-of-the-art dynamical modelling of their structures, and look for any clear evidence which would indicate that they are associated with stripped satellites. This study will build on our previous work with STIS and WFPC2 imaging designed to study the 'Fundamental Plane' of globular clusters. When our new work is combined with Archival WFPC2, STIS, and ACS material, we will also be able to construct the definitive mapping of the Fundamental Plane of globular clusters at its uppermost mass range, and confirm whether or not the UCD and dE, N objects occupy a different structural parameter space.

  2. Dimensions and aspect ratios of natural ice crystals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Um

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available During the 2006 Tropical Warm Pool International Cloud Experiment (TWP-ICE in the tropics, the 2008 Indirect and Semi-Direct Aerosol Campaign (ISDAC in the Arctic, and the 2010 Small PARTicles In CirrUS (SPARTICUS campaign at mid-latitudes, high-resolution images of ice crystals were recorded by a Cloud Particle Imager at temperatures (T between −87 and 0 °C. The projected maximum dimension (D', length (L', and width (W' of pristine columns, plates, and component bullets of bullet rosettes were measured using newly developed software, the Ice Crystal Ruler. The number of bullets in each bullet rosette was also measured. Column crystals were further distinguished as either horizontally oriented columns or columns with other orientations to eliminate any orientation effect on the measured dimensions. The dimensions and aspect ratios (AR, the dimension of the major axis divided by the dimension of the minor axis of crystals were determined as functions of temperature, geophysical location, and type of cirrus. Dimensions of crystals generally increased with temperature. Columns and bullets had larger dimensions (i.e., W' of the minor axis (i.e., a axis for a given dimension (i.e., D' orL' of the major axis (i.e., c axis, and thus smaller AR, as T increased, whereas this trend did not occur for plate crystals. The average number of branches in bullet rosettes was 5.50 ± 1.35 during three campaigns and 6.32 ± 1.34 (5.46 ± 1.34; 4.95 ± 1.01 during TWP-ICE (SPARTICUS; ISDAC. The AR of bullets increased with the number of branches in bullet rosettes. Most dimensions of crystals and ARs of columnar crystals measured during SPARTICUS were larger than those measured during TWP-ICE and ISDAC at −67 L–W relationships of columns derived using current data exhibited a strong dependence on temperature; similar relationships determined in previous studies were within the range of the current data.

  3. Analytical calculation of dE/dx cluster-charge loss due to threshold effects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brady, F.P.; Dunn, J.

    1997-01-01

    This letter presents a simple analytical approximation which allows one to estimate the effect of ADC threshold on the measured cluster-charge size as used for dE/dx determinations. The idea is to gain some intuitive understanding of the cluster-charge loss and not to replace more accurate simulations. The method is applied to the multiple sampling measurements of energy loss in the main time projection chambers (TPCs) of the NA49 experiment at CERN SPS. The calculations are in reasonable agreement with data. (orig.)

  4. Ligand cluster-based protein network and ePlatton, a multi-target ligand finder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Du, Yu; Shi, Tieliu

    2016-01-01

    Small molecules are information carriers that make cells aware of external changes and couple internal metabolic and signalling pathway systems with each other. In some specific physiological status, natural or artificial molecules are used to interact with selective biological targets to activate or inhibit their functions to achieve expected biological and physiological output. Millions of years of evolution have optimized biological processes and pathways and now the endocrine and immune system cannot work properly without some key small molecules. In the past thousands of years, the human race has managed to find many medicines against diseases by trail-and-error experience. In the recent decades, with the deepening understanding of life and the progress of molecular biology, researchers spare no effort to design molecules targeting one or two key enzymes and receptors related to corresponding diseases. But recent studies in pharmacogenomics have shown that polypharmacology may be necessary for the effects of drugs, which challenge the paradigm, 'one drug, one target, one disease'. Nowadays, cheminformatics and structural biology can help us reasonably take advantage of the polypharmacology to design next-generation promiscuous drugs and drug combination therapies. 234,591 protein-ligand interactions were extracted from ChEMBL. By the 2D structure similarity, 13,769 ligand emerged from 156,151 distinct ligands which were recognized by 1477 proteins. Ligand cluster- and sequence-based protein networks (LCBN, SBN) were constructed, compared and analysed. For assisting compound designing, exploring polypharmacology and finding possible drug combination, we integrated the pathway, disease, drug adverse reaction and the relationship of targets and ligand clusters into the web platform, ePlatton, which is available at http://www.megabionet.org/eplatton. Although there were some disagreements between the LCBN and SBN, communities in both networks were largely the same

  5. THE EVOLUTION OF DUSTY STAR FORMATION IN GALAXY CLUSTERS TO z = 1: SPITZER INFRARED OBSERVATIONS OF THE FIRST RED-SEQUENCE CLUSTER SURVEY

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Webb, T. M. A.; O' Donnell, D.; Coppin, Kristen; Faloon, Ashley; Geach, James E.; Noble, Allison [McGill University, 3600 rue University, Montreal, QC, H3A 2T8 (Canada); Yee, H. K. C. [Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Toronto, 50 St. George St., Toronto, ON, M5S 3H4 (Canada); Gilbank, David [South African Astronomical Observatory, P.O. Box 9, Observatory, 7935 (South Africa); Ellingson, Erica [Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309 (United States); Gladders, Mike [Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of Chicago, 5640 S. Ellis Ave., Chicago, IL 60637 (United States); Muzzin, Adam [Leiden Observatory, University of Leiden, Niels Bohrweg 2, NL-2333 CA, Leiden (Netherlands); Wilson, Gillian [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California at Riverside, 900 University Avenue, Riverside, CA 92521 (United States); Yan, Renbin [Center for Cosmology and Particle Physics, Department of Physics, New York University, 4 Washington Place, New York, NY 10003 (United States)

    2013-10-01

    We present the results of an infrared (IR) study of high-redshift galaxy clusters with the MIPS camera on board the Spitzer Space Telescope. We have assembled a sample of 42 clusters from the Red-Sequence Cluster Survey-1 over the redshift range 0.3 < z < 1.0 and spanning an approximate range in mass of 10{sup 14-15} M {sub ☉}. We statistically measure the number of IR-luminous galaxies in clusters above a fixed inferred IR luminosity of 2 × 10{sup 11} M {sub ☉}, assuming a star forming galaxy template, per unit cluster mass and find it increases to higher redshift. Fitting a simple power-law we measure evolution of (1 + z){sup 5.1±1.9} over the range 0.3 < z < 1.0. These results are tied to the adoption of a single star forming galaxy template; the presence of active galactic nuclei, and an evolution in their relative contribution to the mid-IR galaxy emission, will alter the overall number counts per cluster and their rate of evolution. Under the star formation assumption we infer the approximate total star formation rate per unit cluster mass (ΣSFR/M {sub cluster}). The evolution is similar, with ΣSFR/M {sub cluster} ∼ (1 + z){sup 5.4±1.9}. We show that this can be accounted for by the evolution of the IR-bright field population over the same redshift range; that is, the evolution can be attributed entirely to the change in the in-falling field galaxy population. We show that the ΣSFR/M {sub cluster} (binned over all redshift) decreases with increasing cluster mass with a slope (ΣSFR/M{sub cluster}∼M{sub cluster}{sup -1.5±0.4}) consistent with the dependence of the stellar-to-total mass per unit cluster mass seen locally. The inferred star formation seen here could produce ∼5%-10% of the total stellar mass in massive clusters at z = 0, but we cannot constrain the descendant population, nor how rapidly the star-formation must shut-down once the galaxies have entered the cluster environment. Finally, we show a clear decrease in the number of IR

  6. THE EVOLUTION OF DUSTY STAR FORMATION IN GALAXY CLUSTERS TO z = 1: SPITZER INFRARED OBSERVATIONS OF THE FIRST RED-SEQUENCE CLUSTER SURVEY

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Webb, T. M. A.; O'Donnell, D.; Coppin, Kristen; Faloon, Ashley; Geach, James E.; Noble, Allison; Yee, H. K. C.; Gilbank, David; Ellingson, Erica; Gladders, Mike; Muzzin, Adam; Wilson, Gillian; Yan, Renbin

    2013-01-01

    We present the results of an infrared (IR) study of high-redshift galaxy clusters with the MIPS camera on board the Spitzer Space Telescope. We have assembled a sample of 42 clusters from the Red-Sequence Cluster Survey-1 over the redshift range 0.3 14-15 M ☉ . We statistically measure the number of IR-luminous galaxies in clusters above a fixed inferred IR luminosity of 2 × 10 11 M ☉ , assuming a star forming galaxy template, per unit cluster mass and find it increases to higher redshift. Fitting a simple power-law we measure evolution of (1 + z) 5.1±1.9 over the range 0.3 cluster ). The evolution is similar, with ΣSFR/M cluster ∼ (1 + z) 5.4±1.9 . We show that this can be accounted for by the evolution of the IR-bright field population over the same redshift range; that is, the evolution can be attributed entirely to the change in the in-falling field galaxy population. We show that the ΣSFR/M cluster (binned over all redshift) decreases with increasing cluster mass with a slope (ΣSFR/M cluster ∼M cluster -1.5±0.4 ) consistent with the dependence of the stellar-to-total mass per unit cluster mass seen locally. The inferred star formation seen here could produce ∼5%-10% of the total stellar mass in massive clusters at z = 0, but we cannot constrain the descendant population, nor how rapidly the star-formation must shut-down once the galaxies have entered the cluster environment. Finally, we show a clear decrease in the number of IR-bright galaxies per unit optical galaxy in the cluster cores, confirming star formation continues to avoid the highest density regions of the universe at z ∼ 0.75 (the average redshift of the high-redshift clusters). While several previous studies appear to show enhanced star formation in high-redshift clusters relative to the field we note that these papers have not accounted for the overall increase in galaxy or dark matter density at the location of clusters. Once this is done, clusters at z ∼ 0.75 have the same

  7. Biographical Sources in the Sciences--Life, Earth and Physical Sciences (1989-2006). LC Science Tracer Bullet. TB 06-4

    Science.gov (United States)

    Freitag, Ruth, Comp.; Bradley, Michelle Cadoree, Comp.

    2006-01-01

    This guide offers a systematic approach to the wide variety of published biographical information on men and women of science in the life, earth and physical sciences, primarily from 1989 to 2006, and complements Library of Congress Science Tracer Bullet "TB88-3" ("Biographical Sources in the Sciences," compiled 1988 [ED306074]) and "TB06-7"…

  8. The Atacama Cosmology Telescope: ACT-CL J0102-4915 'EL GORDO', A Massive Merging Cluster at Redshift 0.87

    Science.gov (United States)

    Menanteau, Felipe; Hughes, John P.; Sifon, Cristobal; Hilton, Matt; Gonzalez, Jorge; Infante, Leopoldo; Barrientos, L. Felipe; Baker, Andrew J.; Bond, John R.; Das, Sudeep; hide

    2012-01-01

    We present a detailed analysis from new multi-wavelength observations of the exceptional galaxy cluster ACT-CL J0102-4915, likely the most massive, hottest, most X-ray luminous and brightest Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect cluster known at redshifts greater than 0.6. The Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) collaboration discovered ACT-CL J0102-4915 as the most significant Sunyaev-Zeldovich (SZ) decrement in a sky survey area of 755 square degrees. Our VLT/FORS2 spectra of 89 member galaxies yield a cluster redshift, z = 0.870, and velocity dispersion, sigma(sub gal) = 1321+/-106 km s-1. Our Chandra observations reveal a hot and X-ray luminous system with an integrated temperature of T(sub X) = 14.5+/-1.0 keV and 0.5-2.0 keV band luminosity of L(sub X) = (2.19+/-0.11)×10(sup 45) h(sup -2)(sub 70) erg s-1. We obtain several statistically consistent cluster mass estimates; using empirical mass scaling relations with velocity dispersion, X-ray Y(sub X), and integrated SZ distortion, we estimate a cluster mass of M(sub 200a) = (2.16+/-0.32)×1015 h(sup -1)(sub 70) solar mass. We constrain the stellar content of the cluster to be less than 1% of the total mass, using Spitzer IRAC and optical imaging. The Chandra and VLT/FORS2 optical data also reveal that ACT-CL J0102-4915 is undergoing a major merger between components with a mass ratio of approximately 2 to 1. The X-ray data show significant temperature variations from a low of 6.6+/-0.7 keV at the merging low-entropy, high-metallicity, cool core to a high of 22+/-6 keV. We also see a wake in the X-ray surface brightness and deprojected gas density caused by the passage of one cluster through the other. Archival radio data at 843 MHz reveal diffuse radio emission that, if associated with the cluster, indicates the presence of an intense double radio relic, hosted by the highest redshift cluster yet. ACT-CL J0102-4915 is possibly a high-redshift analog of the famous Bullet Cluster. Such a massive cluster at this redshift

  9. Self-action of Bessel wave packets in a system of coupled light guides and formation of light bullets

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Balakin, A. A., E-mail: balakin.alexey@yandex.ru; Mironov, V. A.; Skobelev, S. A., E-mail: sk.sa1981@gmail.com [Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Applied Physics (Russian Federation)

    2017-01-15

    The self-action of two-dimensional and three-dimensional Bessel wave packets in a system of coupled light guides is considered using the discrete nonlinear Schrödinger equation. The features of the self-action of such wave fields are related to their initial strong spatial inhomogeneity. The numerical simulation shows that for the field amplitude exceeding a critical value, the development of an instability typical of a medium with the cubic nonlinearity is observed. Various regimes are studied: the self-channeling of a wave beam in one light guide at powers not strongly exceeding a critical value, the formation of the “kaleidoscopic” picture of a wave packet during the propagation of higher-power radiation along a stratified medium, the formation of light bullets during competition between self-focusing and modulation instabilities in the case of three-dimensional wave packets, etc. In the problem of laser pulse shortening, the situation is considered when the wave-field stratification in the transverse direction dominates. This process is accompanied by the self-compression of laser pulses in well enough separated light guides. The efficiency of conversion of the initial Bessel field distribution to two flying parallel light bullets is about 50%.

  10. Analysis of the selective advantage conferred by a C-E1 fusion protein synthesized by rubella virus DI RNAs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Claus, Claudia; Tzeng, W.-P.; Liebert, Uwe Gerd; Frey, Teryl K.

    2007-01-01

    During serial passaging of rubella virus (RUB) in cell culture, the dominant species of defective-interfering RNA (DI) generated contains an in-frame deletion between the capsid protein (C) gene and E1 glycoprotein gene resulting in production of a C-E1 fusion protein that is necessary for the maintenance of the DI [Tzeng, W.P., Frey, T.K. (2006). C-E1 fusion protein synthesized by rubella virus DI RNAs maintained during serial passage. Virology 356 198-207.]. A BHK cell line stably expressing the RUB structural proteins was established which was used to package DIs into virus particles following transfection with in vitro transcripts from DI infectious cDNA constructs. Packaging of a DI encoding an in-frame C-GFP-E1 reporter fusion protein corresponding to the C-E1 fusion protein expressed in a native DI was only marginally more efficient than packaging of a DI encoding GFP, indicating that the C-E1 fusion protein did not function by enhancing packaging. However, infection with the DI encoding the C-GFP-E1 fusion protein (in the absence of wt RUB helper virus) resulted in formation of clusters of GFP-positive cells and the percentage of GFP-positive cells in the culture following infection remained relatively constant. In contrast, a DI encoding GFP did not form GFP-positive clusters and the percentage of GFP-positive cells declined by roughly half from 2 to 4 days post-infection. Cluster formation and sustaining the percentage of infected (GFP-positive) cells required the C part of the fusion protein, including the downstream but not the upstream of two arginine clusters (both of which are associated with RNA binding and association with mitochondrial p32 protein) and the E1 part through the transmembrane sequence, but not the C-terminal cytoplasmic tail. Among a collection of mutant DI constructs, cluster formation and sustaining infected cell percentage correlated with maintenance during serial passage with wt RUB. We hypothesize that cluster formation and

  11. Probing the Electronic Structure and Band Gap Evolution of Titanium Oxide Clusters (TiO2)n- (n=1-10) Using Photoelectron Spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhai, Hua-jin; Wang, Lai S.

    2007-01-01

    TiO2 is a wide-band gap semiconductor and it is an important material for photocatalysis. Here we report an experimental investigation of the electronic structure of (TiO2)n clusters and how their band gap evolves as a function of size using anion photoelectron spectroscopy (PES). PES spectra of (TiO2)n- clusters for n = 1-10 have been obtained at 193 (6.424 eV) and 157 nm (7.866 eV). The high photon energy at 157 nm allows the band gap of the TiO2 clusters to be clearly revealed up to n = 10. The band gap is observed to be strongly size-dependent for n 1 appears to be localized in a tricoordinated Ti atom, creating a single Ti3+ site and making these clusters ideal molecular models for mechanistic understanding of TiO2 surface defects and photocatalytic properties

  12. Significance of flow clustering and sequencing on sediment transport: 1D sediment transport modelling

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hassan, Kazi; Allen, Deonie; Haynes, Heather

    2016-04-01

    This paper considers 1D hydraulic model data on the effect of high flow clusters and sequencing on sediment transport. Using observed flow gauge data from the River Caldew, England, a novel stochastic modelling approach was developed in order to create alternative 50 year flow sequences. Whilst the observed probability density of gauge data was preserved in all sequences, the order in which those flows occurred was varied using the output from a Hidden Markov Model (HMM) with generalised Pareto distribution (GP). In total, one hundred 50 year synthetic flow series were generated and used as the inflow boundary conditions for individual flow series model runs using the 1D sediment transport model HEC-RAS. The model routed graded sediment through the case study river reach to define the long-term morphological changes. Comparison of individual simulations provided a detailed understanding of the sensitivity of channel capacity to flow sequence. Specifically, each 50 year synthetic flow sequence was analysed using a 3-month, 6-month or 12-month rolling window approach and classified for clusters in peak discharge. As a cluster is described as a temporal grouping of flow events above a specified threshold, the threshold condition used herein is considered as a morphologically active channel forming discharge event. Thus, clusters were identified for peak discharges in excess of 10%, 20%, 50%, 100% and 150% of the 1 year Return Period (RP) event. The window of above-peak flows also required cluster definition and was tested for timeframes 1, 2, 10 and 30 days. Subsequently, clusters could be described in terms of the number of events, maximum peak flow discharge, cumulative flow discharge and skewness (i.e. a description of the flow sequence). The model output for each cluster was analysed for the cumulative flow volume and cumulative sediment transport (mass). This was then compared to the total sediment transport of a single flow event of equivalent flow volume

  13. IDENTIFICAÇÃO DE CLUSTERS INTERNACIONAIS COM BASE NAS DIMENSÕES CULTURAIS DE HOFSTEDE. / Identification of international clusters based on the hofstede’s cultural dimensions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Valderí de Castro Alcântara1

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available Haja vista que a cultura de um país influencia a cultura organizacional das empresas nele presente e ainda é fator determinante no processo de internacionalização, torna-se relevante compreender e mensurar as características culturais de cada país. Os estudos de Hofstede (1984 apresentam uma metodologia útil para comparação entre culturas. Tal metodologia leva em consideração as características deuma cultura que possibilita diferenciar um país de outro. Dessa forma, é possível observar que determinados países compartilham certos traços culturais e, assim, é possível agrupá-los segundo critérios pré-estabelecidos. O presente trabalho objetiva utilizar-se de procedimentos estatísticos multivariados Clusters Analyses, K-Means Cluster Analysis e Análise Discriminante para determinar e validar agrupamentos de países, com base nas dimensões culturais de Hofstede (Distance Index, Individualism, Masculinity e Uncertainty Avoidance Index. Os resultados determinaram quatro clusters: Cluster 1 - países com cultura masculina e individualista; Cluster 2 - cultura coletivista e aversa à incerteza; Cluster 3 - cultura feminina e com baixa distância hierárquica; e Cluster 4 - cultura com elevada distância hierárquica e propensão à incerteza./ Considering that the culture of a country influences the organizational culture of this company and it is still a determining factor in the internationalization process becomes important to understand and measure the cultural characteristics of each country. The studies of Hofstede (1984 present a useful methodology for comparing cultures, this methodology takes into account the characteristics of a culturethat allows to differentiate one from another country. Thus one can observe that certain countries share certain cultural traits and so it is possible grouping them according to predetermined criteria. The present work aims to utilize multivariate statistical procedures Cluster Analyses

  14. Presence of the vancomycin resistance gene cluster vanC1, vanXYc, and vanT in Enterococcus casseliflavus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hölzel, Christina; Bauer, Johann; Stegherr, Eva-Maria; Schwaiger, Karin

    2014-04-01

    The three chromosomally located clustered genes vanC1, vanXYc, and vanT confer intrinsic resistance to vancomycin and are used for species identification of Enterococcus gallinarum. In this study, 28 strains belonging to the E. gallinarum/casseliflavus group isolated from cloacal swabs from laying hens were screened for the presence of vanC1. As confirmed by species-specific multiplex PCR, 11 vanC1-positive strains were identified as E. gallinarum. Surprisingly, one yellow pigmented strain, verified as E. casseliflavus by species-specific multiplex PCR, was also vanC1 positive; vanXYc and vanT were additionally detectable in this strain. To our knowledge, this is the first report of vanC1, vanXYc, and vanT in E. casseliflavus. The minimum inhibitory concentration of vancomycin was 4 mg/L. Real-time reverse transcription-PCR revealed that none of the clustered genes was expressed in this strain. Even if the genes seem not to be active, there is a certain risk that they will be transferred to other bacteria where they might be functionally expressed. Therefore, it may be advisable to expand the search for vanC1, vanXYc, and vanT from E. gallinarum to other (enterococcal) species. This study confirms that enterococci live up to their name as being reservoir bacteria and should therefore always be closely monitored.

  15. EARLY-TYPE GALAXIES AT z = 1.3. I. THE LYNX SUPERCLUSTER: CLUSTER AND GROUPS AT z = 1.3. MORPHOLOGY AND COLOR-MAGNITUDE RELATION

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mei, Simona; Raichoor, Anand; Huertas-Company, Marc; Adam Stanford, S.; Rettura, Alessandro; Jee, Myungkook J.; Holden, Brad P.; Illingworth, Garth D.; Postman, Marc; Nakata, Fumiaki; Kodama, Tadayuki; Finoguenov, Alexis; Ford, Holland C.; Rosati, Piero; Tanaka, Masayuki; Koyama, Yusei; Shankar, Francesco; Carrasco, Eleazar R.; Demarco, Ricardo; Eisenhardt, Peter

    2012-01-01

    We confirm the detection of three groups in the Lynx supercluster, at z ≈ 1.3, through spectroscopic follow-up and X-ray imaging, and we give estimates for their redshifts and masses. We study the properties of the group galaxies compared to the two central clusters, RX J0849+4452 and RX J0848+4453. Using spectroscopic follow-up and multi-wavelength photometric redshifts, we select 89 galaxies in the clusters, of which 41 are spectroscopically confirmed, and 74 galaxies in the groups, of which 25 are spectroscopically confirmed. We morphologically classify galaxies by visual inspection, noting that our early-type galaxy (ETG) sample would have been contaminated at the 30%-40% level by simple automated classification methods (e.g., based on Sérsic index). In luminosity-selected samples, both clusters and groups show high fractions of bulge-dominated galaxies with a diffuse component that we visually identified as a disk and which we classified as bulge-dominated spirals, e.g., Sas. The ETG fractions never rise above ≈50% in the clusters, which is low compared to the fractions observed in other massive clusters at z ≈ 1. In the groups, ETG fractions never exceed ≈25%. However, overall bulge-dominated galaxy fractions (ETG plus Sas) are similar to those observed for ETGs in clusters at z ∼ 1. Bulge-dominated galaxies visually classified as spirals might also be ETGs with tidal features or merger remnants. They are mainly red and passive, and span a large range in luminosity. Their star formation seems to have been quenched before experiencing a morphological transformation. Because their fraction is smaller at lower redshifts, they might be the spiral population that evolves into ETGs. For mass-selected samples of galaxies with masses M > 10 10.6 M ☉ within Σ > 500 Mpc –2 , the ETG and overall bulge-dominated galaxy fractions show no significant evolution with respect to local clusters, suggesting that morphological transformations might occur at lower

  16. The E. coli monothiol glutaredoxin GrxD forms homodimeric and heterodimeric FeS cluster containing complexes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yeung, N; Gold, B; Liu, N L; Prathapam, R; Sterling, H J; Willams, E R; Butland, G

    2011-10-18

    Monothiol glutaredoxins (mono-Grx) represent a highly evolutionarily conserved class of proteins present in organisms ranging from prokaryotes to humans. Mono-Grxs have been implicated in iron sulfur (FeS) cluster biosynthesis as potential scaffold proteins and in iron homeostasis via an FeS-containing complex with Fra2p (homologue of E. coli BolA) in yeast and are linked to signal transduction in mammalian systems. However, the function of the mono-Grx in prokaryotes and the nature of an interaction with BolA-like proteins have not been established. Recent genome-wide screens for E. coli genetic interactions reported the synthetic lethality (combination of mutations leading to cell death; mutation of only one of these genes does not) of a grxD mutation when combined with strains defective in FeS cluster biosynthesis (isc operon) functions [Butland, G., et al. (2008) Nature Methods 5, 789-795]. These data connected the only E. coli mono-Grx, GrxD to a potential role in FeS cluster biosynthesis. We investigated GrxD to uncover the molecular basis of this synthetic lethality and observed that GrxD can form FeS-bound homodimeric and BolA containing heterodimeric complexes. These complexes display substantially different spectroscopic and functional properties, including the ability to act as scaffold proteins for intact FeS cluster transfer to the model [2Fe-2S] acceptor protein E. coli apo-ferredoxin (Fdx), with the homodimer being significantly more efficient. In this work, we functionally dissect the potential cellular roles of GrxD as a component of both homodimeric and heterodimeric complexes to ultimately uncover if either of these complexes performs functions linked to FeS cluster biosynthesis. © 2011 American Chemical Society

  17. Dynamics and stability of charged clusters and droplets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Manil, B.; Lebius, H.; Chandezon, F.; Huber, B.A.; Duft, D.; Leisner, T.; Guet, C.

    2002-01-01

    Lord Raleigh predicted (Phil. Mag. 14, 184(1982) ) that a charged, incompressible liquid droplet becomes unstable as soon as the cohesive forces, which create the surface tension and which try to keep the droplet in its spherical form, are equal to the Coulomb forces, which try to destabilise it. This means that that the Coulomb energy E c corresponds to twice the surface energy E s . The ratio X = E c / 2 E s (feasibility), thus characterising the Raleigh limit by X = 1. In order to test its validity, metal clusters were ionized in collisions with highly charged ions, allowing for the first time to prepare charged systems with a feasibility greater than 1. Multiply charged sodium clusters were produced through collisions of Ar 11+ or Xe 28+ with neutral sodium clusters. It was observed, with increasing cluster charge and consequently cluster size the detected system indeed approach the Raleigh limit (for q = 10 X = 0.85). However, it was not reached due to the initial cluster temperature and the energy transfer in the collision. Subsequent, the stability and the explosion of highly charge microdroplets which were injected into a Paul trap levitator were studied, specifically, glycol was irradiated with a HeNe laser. It was observed that a resonance phenomena appeared just before each explosion. As the resonance is linked to X ∼ 1, this is the first proof that the Coulomb instability of charge glycol microdroplets occurs at X ∼ 1, as predicted by Lord Raleigh. (nevyjel)

  18. THE TYPE II SUPERNOVA RATE IN z {approx} 0.1 GALAXY CLUSTERS FROM THE MULTI-EPOCH NEARBY CLUSTER SURVEY

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Graham, M. L.; Sand, D. J. [Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network, 6740 Cortona Drive, Suite 102, Santa Barbara, CA 93117 (United States); Bildfell, C. J.; Pritchet, C. J. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 3055, STN CSC, Victoria BC V8W 3P6 (Canada); Zaritsky, D.; Just, D. W.; Herbert-Fort, S. [Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Hoekstra, H. [Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Niels Bohrweg 2, NL-2333 CA Leiden (Netherlands); Sivanandam, S. [Dunlap Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics, 50 St. George St., Toronto, ON M5S 3H4 (Canada); Foley, R. J. [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)

    2012-07-01

    We present seven spectroscopically confirmed Type II cluster supernovae (SNe II) discovered in the Multi-Epoch Nearby Cluster Survey, a supernova survey targeting 57 low-redshift 0.05 < z < 0.15 galaxy clusters with the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. We find the rate of Type II supernovae within R{sub 200} of z {approx} 0.1 galaxy clusters to be 0.026{sup +0.085}{sub -0.018}(stat){sup +0.003}{sub -0.001}(sys) SNuM. Surprisingly, one SN II is in a red-sequence host galaxy that shows no clear evidence of recent star formation (SF). This is unambiguous evidence in support of ongoing, low-level SF in at least some cluster elliptical galaxies, and illustrates that galaxies that appear to be quiescent cannot be assumed to host only Type Ia SNe. Based on this single SN II we make the first measurement of the SN II rate in red-sequence galaxies, and find it to be 0.007{sup +0.014}{sub -0.007}(stat){sup +0.009}{sub -0.001}(sys) SNuM. We also make the first derivation of cluster specific star formation rates (sSFR) from cluster SN II rates. We find that for all galaxy types the sSFR is 5.1{sup +15.8}{sub -3.1}(stat) {+-} 0.9(sys) M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1} (10{sup 12} M{sub Sun }){sup -1}, and for red-sequence galaxies only it is 2.0{sup +4.2}{sub -0.9}(stat) {+-} 0.4(sys) M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1} (10{sup 12} M{sub Sun }){sup -1}. These values agree with SFRs measured from infrared and ultraviolet photometry, and H{alpha} emission from optical spectroscopy. Additionally, we use the SFR derived from our SNII rate to show that although a small fraction of cluster Type Ia SNe may originate in the young stellar population and experience a short delay time, these results do not preclude the use of cluster SN Ia rates to derive the late-time delay time distribution for SNe Ia.

  19. SPECTROSCOPIC CONFIRMATION OF A MASSIVE RED-SEQUENCE-SELECTED GALAXY CLUSTER AT z = 1.34 IN THE SpARCS-SOUTH CLUSTER SURVEY

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilson, Gillian; Demarco, Ricardo; Muzzin, Adam; Yee, H. K. C.; Lacy, Mark; Surace, Jason; Gilbank, David; Blindert, Kris; Hoekstra, Henk; Majumdar, Subhabrata; Gardner, Jonathan P.; Gladders, Michael D.; Lonsdale, Carol

    2009-01-01

    The Spitzer Adaptation of the Red-sequence Cluster Survey (SpARCS) is a z'-passband imaging survey, consisting of deep (z' ≅ 24 AB) observations made from both hemispheres using the CFHT 3.6 m and CTIO 4 m telescopes. The survey was designed with the primary aim of detecting galaxy clusters at z > 1. In tandem with pre-existing 3.6 μm observations from the Spitzer Space Telescope SWIRE Legacy Survey, SpARCS detects clusters using an infrared adaptation of the two-filter red-sequence cluster technique. The total effective area of the SpARCS cluster survey is 41.9 deg 2 . In this paper, we provide an overview of the 13.6 deg 2 Southern CTIO/MOSAIC II observations. The 28.3 deg 2 Northern CFHT/MegaCam observations are summarized in a companion paper by Muzzin et al. In this paper, we also report spectroscopic confirmation of SpARCS J003550-431224, a very rich galaxy cluster at z = 1.335, discovered in the ELAIS-S1 field. To date, this is the highest spectroscopically confirmed redshift for a galaxy cluster discovered using the red-sequence technique. Based on nine confirmed members, SpARCS J003550-431224 has a preliminary velocity dispersion of 1050 ± 230 km s -1 . With its proven capability for efficient cluster detection, SpARCS is a demonstration that we have entered an era of large, homogeneously selected z > 1 cluster surveys.

  20. Cluster-cluster clustering

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barnes, J.; Dekel, A.; Efstathiou, G.; Frenk, C.S.; Yale Univ., New Haven, CT; California Univ., Santa Barbara; Cambridge Univ., England; Sussex Univ., Brighton, England)

    1985-01-01

    The cluster correlation function xi sub c(r) is compared with the particle correlation function, xi(r) in cosmological N-body simulations with a wide range of initial conditions. The experiments include scale-free initial conditions, pancake models with a coherence length in the initial density field, and hybrid models. Three N-body techniques and two cluster-finding algorithms are used. In scale-free models with white noise initial conditions, xi sub c and xi are essentially identical. In scale-free models with more power on large scales, it is found that the amplitude of xi sub c increases with cluster richness; in this case the clusters give a biased estimate of the particle correlations. In the pancake and hybrid models (with n = 0 or 1), xi sub c is steeper than xi, but the cluster correlation length exceeds that of the points by less than a factor of 2, independent of cluster richness. Thus the high amplitude of xi sub c found in studies of rich clusters of galaxies is inconsistent with white noise and pancake models and may indicate a primordial fluctuation spectrum with substantial power on large scales. 30 references

  1. THE ATACAMA COSMOLOGY TELESCOPE: ACT-CL J0102–4915 'EL GORDO', A MASSIVE MERGING CLUSTER AT REDSHIFT 0.87

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Menanteau, Felipe; Hughes, John P.; Baker, Andrew J.; Sifón, Cristóbal; González, Jorge; Infante, Leopoldo; Felipe Barrientos, L.; Hilton, Matt; Bond, John R.; Hajian, Amir; Nolta, Michael R.; Das, Sudeep; Devlin, Mark J.; Marsden, Danica; Dunkley, Joanna; Hincks, Adam D.; Kosowsky, Arthur; Marriage, Tobias A.; Moodley, Kavilan; Niemack, Michael D.

    2012-01-01

    We present a detailed analysis from new multi-wavelength observations of the exceptional galaxy cluster ACT-CL J0102–4915, likely the most massive, hottest, most X-ray luminous and brightest Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect cluster known at redshifts greater than 0.6. The Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) collaboration discovered ACT-CL J0102–4915 as the most significant SZ decrement in a sky survey area of 755 deg 2 . Our Very Large Telescope (VLT)/FORS2 spectra of 89 member galaxies yield a cluster redshift, z = 0.870, and velocity dispersion, σ gal = 1321 ± 106 km s –1 . Our Chandra observations reveal a hot and X-ray luminous system with an integrated temperature of T X = 14.5 ± 0.1 keV and 0.5-2.0 keV band luminosity of L X = (2.19 ± 0.11) × 10 45 h –2 70 erg s –1 . We obtain several statistically consistent cluster mass estimates; using empirical mass scaling relations with velocity dispersion, X-ray Y X , and integrated SZ distortion, we estimate a cluster mass of M 200a = (2.16 ± 0.32) × 10 15 h –1 70 M ☉ . We constrain the stellar content of the cluster to be less than 1% of the total mass, using Spitzer IRAC and optical imaging. The Chandra and VLT/FORS2 optical data also reveal that ACT-CL J0102–4915 is undergoing a major merger between components with a mass ratio of approximately 2 to 1. The X-ray data show significant temperature variations from a low of 6.6 ± 0.7 keV at the merging low-entropy, high-metallicity, cool core to a high of 22 ± 6 keV. We also see a wake in the X-ray surface brightness and deprojected gas density caused by the passage of one cluster through the other. Archival radio data at 843 MHz reveal diffuse radio emission that, if associated with the cluster, indicates the presence of an intense double radio relic, hosted by the highest redshift cluster yet. ACT-CL J0102–4915 is possibly a high-redshift analog of the famous Bullet cluster. Such a massive cluster at this redshift is rare, although consistent

  2. Small gold clusters on graphene, their mobility and clustering: a DFT study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Amft, Martin; Sanyal, Biplab; Eriksson, Olle; Skorodumova, Natalia V

    2011-01-01

    Motivated by the experimentally observed high mobility of gold atoms on graphene and their tendency to form nanometer-sized clusters, we present a density functional theory study of the ground state structures of small gold clusters on graphene, their mobility and clustering. Our detailed analysis of the electronic structures identifies the opportunity to form strong gold-gold bonds and the graphene-mediated interaction of the pre-adsorbed fragments as the driving forces behind gold's tendency to aggregate on graphene. While clusters containing up to three gold atoms have one unambiguous ground state structure, both gas phase isomers of a cluster with four gold atoms can be found on graphene. In the gas phase the diamond-shaped Au 4 D cluster is the ground state structure, whereas the Y-shaped Au 4 Y becomes the actual ground state when adsorbed on graphene. As we show, both clusters can be produced on graphene by two distinct clustering processes. We also studied in detail the stepwise formation of a gold dimer out of two pre-adsorbed adatoms, as well as the formation of Au 3 . All reactions are exothermic and no further activation barriers, apart from the diffusion barriers, were found. The diffusion barriers of all studied clusters range from 4 to 36 meV only, and are substantially exceeded by the adsorption energies of - 0.1 to - 0.59 eV. This explains the high mobility of Au 1-4 on graphene along the C-C bonds.

  3. THE ATACAMA COSMOLOGY TELESCOPE: ACT-CL J0102-4915 'EL GORDO', A MASSIVE MERGING CLUSTER AT REDSHIFT 0.87

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Menanteau, Felipe; Hughes, John P.; Baker, Andrew J. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Rutgers University, 136 Frelinghuysen Rd, Piscataway, NJ 08854 (United States); Sifon, Cristobal; Gonzalez, Jorge; Infante, Leopoldo; Felipe Barrientos, L. [Departamento de Astronomia y Astrofisica, Facultad de Fisica, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Casilla 306, Santiago 22 (Chile); Hilton, Matt [School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD (United Kingdom); Bond, John R.; Hajian, Amir; Nolta, Michael R. [Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3H8 (Canada); Das, Sudeep [Berkeley Center for Cosmological Physics, LBL and Department of Physics, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Devlin, Mark J.; Marsden, Danica [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, 209 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (United States); Dunkley, Joanna [Department of Astrophysics, Oxford University, Oxford, OX1 3RH (United Kingdom); Hincks, Adam D. [Joseph Henry Laboratories of Physics, Jadwin Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States); Kosowsky, Arthur [Physics and Astronomy Department, University of Pittsburgh, 100 Allen Hall, 3941 O' Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 (United States); Marriage, Tobias A. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218-2686 (United States); Moodley, Kavilan [Astrophysics and Cosmology Research Unit, School of Mathematical Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4041 (South Africa); Niemack, Michael D. [NIST Quantum Devices Group, 325 Broadway Mailcode 817.03, Boulder, CO 80305 (United States); and others

    2012-03-20

    We present a detailed analysis from new multi-wavelength observations of the exceptional galaxy cluster ACT-CL J0102-4915, likely the most massive, hottest, most X-ray luminous and brightest Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect cluster known at redshifts greater than 0.6. The Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) collaboration discovered ACT-CL J0102-4915 as the most significant SZ decrement in a sky survey area of 755 deg{sup 2}. Our Very Large Telescope (VLT)/FORS2 spectra of 89 member galaxies yield a cluster redshift, z = 0.870, and velocity dispersion, {sigma}{sub gal} = 1321 {+-} 106 km s{sup -1}. Our Chandra observations reveal a hot and X-ray luminous system with an integrated temperature of T{sub X} = 14.5 {+-} 0.1 keV and 0.5-2.0 keV band luminosity of L{sub X} = (2.19 {+-} 0.11) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 45} h{sup -2}{sub 70} erg s{sup -1}. We obtain several statistically consistent cluster mass estimates; using empirical mass scaling relations with velocity dispersion, X-ray Y{sub X}, and integrated SZ distortion, we estimate a cluster mass of M{sub 200a} = (2.16 {+-} 0.32) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 15} h{sup -1}{sub 70} M{sub Sun }. We constrain the stellar content of the cluster to be less than 1% of the total mass, using Spitzer IRAC and optical imaging. The Chandra and VLT/FORS2 optical data also reveal that ACT-CL J0102-4915 is undergoing a major merger between components with a mass ratio of approximately 2 to 1. The X-ray data show significant temperature variations from a low of 6.6 {+-} 0.7 keV at the merging low-entropy, high-metallicity, cool core to a high of 22 {+-} 6 keV. We also see a wake in the X-ray surface brightness and deprojected gas density caused by the passage of one cluster through the other. Archival radio data at 843 MHz reveal diffuse radio emission that, if associated with the cluster, indicates the presence of an intense double radio relic, hosted by the highest redshift cluster yet. ACT-CL J0102-4915 is possibly a high

  4. First-principle study of silicon cluster doped with rhodium: Rh{sub 2}Si{sub n} (n = 1–11) clusters

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhang, Shuai; Luo, Chang Geng; Li, Hua Yang [Department of Physics, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061 (China); Lu, Cheng, E-mail: lucheng@calypso.cn [Department of Physics, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061 (China); State Key Laboratory of Superhard Materials, Jilin University, Changchun 130012 (China); Li, Gen Quan; Lu, Zhi Wen [Department of Physics, Nanyang Normal University, Nanyang 473061 (China)

    2015-06-15

    The geometries, stabilities and electronic properties of rhodium-doped silicon clusters Rh{sub 2}Si{sub n} (n = 1–11) have been systematically studied by using density functional calculations at the B3LYP/GENECP level. The optimized results show that the lowest-energy isomers of Rh{sub 2}Si{sub n} clusters favor three-dimensional structures for n = 2–11. Based on the averaged binding energy, fragmentation energy, second-order energy difference and HOMO-LUMO energy gap, the stabilities of Rh{sub 2}Si{sub n} (n = 1–11) clusters have been analyzed. The calculated results suggest that the Rh{sub 2}Si{sub 6} cluster has the strongest relative stability and the doping with rhodium atoms can reduce the chemical stabilities of Si{sub n} clusters. The natural population and natural electron configuration analysis indicate that there is charge transfer from the Si atoms and 5s orbital of the Rh atoms to the 4d and 5p orbitals of Rh atoms. The analysis of electron localization function reveal that the Si–Si bonds are mainly covalent bonds and the Si–Rh bonds are almost ionic bonds. Moreover, the vertical ionization potential, vertical electron affinity, chemical hardness, chemical potential, vibrational spectrum and polarizability are also discussed. - Highlights: • The geometric structures of Rh{sub 2}Si{sub n} (n = 1–11) clusters are determined. • The stabilities and electronic properties of Rh{sub 2}Si{sub n} clusters are discussed. • The Rh{sub 2}Si{sub 6} cluster has the higher stability than other clusters. • The doped rhodium atoms can reduce the chemical stabilities of Si{sub n} clusters.

  5. Identification and characterization of a cluster of transcription start sites located in the E6 ORF of human papillomavirus type 16

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rosenstierne, Maiken W; Vinther, Jeppe; Hansen, Christina N

    2003-01-01

    Human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) is the prototype strain among the malignant types of HPV in the western world. The main promoter, P97, located in front of the E6 ORF, has been shown to control expression of the oncogenes E6 and E7. These oncogenes are expressed continuously in HPV-16......-transformed cells. In contrast to malignant HPV types, non-malignant HPV types have separate promoters driving the expression of E6 and E7. Experiments have shown that the translation of E7 is more efficient from monocistronic than bicistronic transcripts encoding both E6 and E7. Here, identification...... of a cluster of transcription start sites located in the E6 ORF of HPV-16 is presented. Transcripts from this region contain the E7 ORF as the first reading frame. The cluster consists of multiple transcription start sites located around nt 441. Additional transcription start sites were identified in a cluster...

  6. MD simulation of cluster formation during sputtering

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Muramoto, T.; Okai, M.; Yamashita, Y.; Yorizane, K.; Yamamura, Y.

    2001-01-01

    The cluster ejection due to cluster impact on a solid surface is studied through molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Simulations are performed for Cu cluster impacts on the Cu(1 1 1) surface for cluster energy 100 eV/atom, and for clusters of 6, 13, 28 and 55 atoms. Interatomic interactions are described by the AMLJ-EAM potential. The vibration energy spectrum is independent of the incident cluster size and energy. This comes from the fact that sputtered clusters become stable through the successive fragmentation of nascent large sputtered clusters. The vibration energy spectra for large sputtered clusters have a peak, whose energy corresponds to the melting temperature of Cu. The exponent of the power-law fit of the abundance distribution and the total sputtering yield for the cluster impacts are higher than that for the monatomic ion impacts with the same total energy, where the exponent δ is given by Y n ∝n δ and Y n is the yield of sputtered n-atom cluster. The exponent δ follows a unified function of the total sputtering yield, which is a monotonic increase function, and it is nearly equal to δ ∼ -3 for larger yield

  7. IgE epitopes of intact and digested Ara h 1

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bøgh, Katrine Lindholm; Nielsen, H.; Madsen, Charlotte Bernhard

    2012-01-01

    epitopes have been suggested to be of great importance. ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to identify IgE specific epitopes of intact and digested Ara h 1, and to compare epitope patterns between humans and rats. MethodsSera from five peanut allergic patients and five Brown Norway rats were used...... to identify intact and digested Ara h 1-specific IgE epitopes by competitive immunoscreening of a phage-displayed random hepta-mer peptide library using polyclonal IgE from the individual sera. The resulting peptide sequences were mapped on the surface of a three-dimensional structure of the Ara h 1 molecule...... to mimic epitopes using a computer-based algorithm. ResultsPatients as well as rats were shown to have individual IgE epitope patterns. All epitope mimics were conformational and found to cluster into three different areas of the Ara h 1 molecule. Five epitope motifs were identified by patient IgE, which...

  8. Supersonic copper clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Powers, D.E.; Hansen, S.G.; Geusic, M.E.; Michalopoulos, D.L.; Smalley, R.E.

    1983-01-01

    Copper clusters ranging in size from 1 to 29 atoms have been prepared in a supersonic beam by laser vaporization of a rotating copper target rod within the throat of a pulsed supersonic nozzle using helium for the carrier gas. The clusters were cooled extensively in the supersonic expansion [T(translational) 1 to 4 K, T(rotational) = 4 K, T(vibrational) = 20 to 70 K]. These clusters were detected in the supersonic beam by laser photoionization with time-of-flight mass analysis. Using a number of fixed frequency outputs of an exciplex laser, the threshold behavior of the photoionization cross section was monitored as a function of cluster size.nce two-photon ionization (R2PI) with mass selective detection allowed the detection of five new electronic band systems in the region between 2690 and 3200 A, for each of the three naturally occurring isotopic forms of Cu 2 . In the process of scanning the R2PI spectrum of these new electronic states, the ionization potential of the copper dimer was determined to be 7.894 +- 0.015 eV

  9. Lead arthritis and lead poisoning following bullet wounds: a clinicopathologic, ultrastructural, and microanalytic study of two cases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Slavin, R E; Swedo, J; Cartwright, J; Viegas, S; Custer, E M

    1988-02-01

    Bullet wounds causing lead synovitis in the wrist and knee are reported in two patients, one of whom also developed clinical plumbism. Very high lead levels in the synovial fluid are believed to be responsible for toxicity changes that occurred in the synovium and bone. Ultrastructurally, these alterations included the formation of nuclear lead inclusions, dilation, and degranulation of the rough endoplasmic reticulum and deposition of crystalline precipitates in the matrix of the mitochondria in macrophages, osteoclasts, and synoviocytes, as well as the development of cytoplasmic lead inclusions in osteoclasts. Energy-dispersive x-ray elemental analysis (EDXEA) indicated that the nuclear inclusions contained only lead, whereas precipitates within the mitochondria and elsewhere in the cytoplasm were composed of complexes containing lead, calcium, and phosphorus. Similarly constituted extracellular complexes were incorporated into newly formed trabecular bone laid down as a physiologic response to the bullet lodged within the wrist bones. This bone subsequently exhibited defects in bone resorption, which were characterized by depressed osteoclastic function and a unique lesion termed incomplete osteocytic osteolysis. The genesis of this latter lesion is uncertain. The sequestration of the partially degraded bone fragments containing lead complexes into the marrow and eventually into the joint spaces and synovium permitted the recycling of bone lead, and this may have played an important role in inducing clinical plumbism in one of the patients in this study.

  10. Clusters e redes de cooperação de pequenas e médias empresas: observatório europeu, caso alemão e contribuições ao caso brasileiro Clusters and cooperation networks of small and medium-sized companies: analysis of european and German experiences and contributions to the brazilian case

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mateus Cecílio Gerolamo

    2008-08-01

    Full Text Available Este trabalho apresenta os recentes estudos sobre clusters e redes de cooperação de pequenas e médias empresas na Europa, realizados pela Comissão Européia, bem como a descrição da atual estratégia de desenvolvimento de redes de competência na Alemanha (Kompetenznetze Deutschland, abordando especificamente o caso da região de Berlim e Brandemburgo. O objetivo principal é, por meio das análises dos programas europeus de desenvolvimento de clusters e redes de cooperação entre pequenas e médias empresas, verificar possibilidades de adaptação para a realidade brasileira no que se refere a arranjos produtivos locais e parques tecnológicos. Em linhas gerais, pequenas e médias empresas pertencentes a clusters na Europa têm demonstrado desempenho acima da média quando comparadas às demais empresas de seus respectivos setores. O aumento da competitividade de clusters e o crescimento econômico regional estão fortemente associados ao investimento em inovação. Esse é o caso da Alemanha que incentiva o desenvolvimento de inovação por meio de suas redes de competência. A região Berlim-Brandemburgo retrata o exemplo de uma estratégia coerente de desenvolvimento local. Pode-se dizer que possíveis alternativas para o Brasil seriam o apoio mais direto do poder público, foco em inovação e definição de processos para gerenciamento das redes de cooperação.This paper presents studies on clusters and cooperation networks of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs developed by the European Commission, as well as a description of the current German strategy for developing competence networks (Kompetenznetze Deutschland, focusing specifically on the case of the regions of Berlin and Brandenburg. The main goal of this work is to analyze the experience of the European and German initiatives and to verify the possibilities of adapting such initiatives to the context of local productive systems and technology parks in Brazil. In

  11. Oligo-branched peptides for tumor targeting: from magic bullets to magic forks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Falciani, Chiara; Pini, Alessandro; Bracci, Luisa

    2009-02-01

    Selective targeting of tumor cells is the final goal of research and drug discovery for cancer diagnosis, imaging and therapy. After the invention of hybridoma technology, the concept of magic bullet was introduced into the field of oncology, referring to selective killing of tumor cells, by specific antibodies. More recently, small molecules and peptides have also been proposed as selective targeting agents. We analyze the state of the art of tumor-selective agents that are presently available and tested in clinical settings. A novel approach based on 'armed' oligo-branched peptides as tumor targeting agents, is discussed and compared with existing tumor-selective therapies mediated by antibodies, small molecules or monomeric peptides. Oligo-branched peptides could be novel drugs that combine the advantages of antibodies and small molecules.

  12. Energy band dispersion in photoemission spectra of argon clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Foerstel, Marko; Mucke, Melanie; Arion, Tiberiu; Lischke, Toralf; Barth, Silko; Ulrich, Volker; Ohrwall, Gunnar; Bjoerneholm, Olle; Hergenhahn, Uwe; Bradshaw, Alex M.

    2011-01-01

    Using photoemission we have investigated free argon clusters from a supersonic nozzle expansion in the photon energy range from threshold up to 28 eV. Measurements were performed both at high resolution with a hemispherical electrostatic energy analyser and at lower resolution with a magnetic bottle device. The latter experiments were performed for various mean cluster sizes. In addition to the ∼1.5 eV broad 3p-derived valence band seen in previous work, there is a sharper feature at ∼15 eV binding energy. Surprisingly for non-oriented clusters, this peak shifts smoothly in binding energy over the narrow photon energy range 15.5-17.7 eV, indicating energy band dispersion. The onset of this bulk band-like behaviour could be determined from the cluster size dependence.

  13. Clustering-based classification of road traffic accidents using hierarchical clustering and artificial neural networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taamneh, Madhar; Taamneh, Salah; Alkheder, Sharaf

    2017-09-01

    Artificial neural networks (ANNs) have been widely used in predicting the severity of road traffic crashes. All available information about previously occurred accidents is typically used for building a single prediction model (i.e., classifier). Too little attention has been paid to the differences between these accidents, leading, in most cases, to build less accurate predictors. Hierarchical clustering is a well-known clustering method that seeks to group data by creating a hierarchy of clusters. Using hierarchical clustering and ANNs, a clustering-based classification approach for predicting the injury severity of road traffic accidents was proposed. About 6000 road accidents occurred over a six-year period from 2008 to 2013 in Abu Dhabi were used throughout this study. In order to reduce the amount of variation in data, hierarchical clustering was applied on the data set to organize it into six different forms, each with different number of clusters (i.e., clusters from 1 to 6). Two ANN models were subsequently built for each cluster of accidents in each generated form. The first model was built and validated using all accidents (training set), whereas only 66% of the accidents were used to build the second model, and the remaining 34% were used to test it (percentage split). Finally, the weighted average accuracy was computed for each type of models in each from of data. The results show that when testing the models using the training set, clustering prior to classification achieves (11%-16%) more accuracy than without using clustering, while the percentage split achieves (2%-5%) more accuracy. The results also suggest that partitioning the accidents into six clusters achieves the best accuracy if both types of models are taken into account.

  14. Lipossomas: a bala mágica acertou? Liposomes: has the magic bullet hit the target?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nuno C. Santos

    2002-12-01

    Full Text Available Efficient drug delivery systems are as important as drug themselves. A powerful drug unable to reach the target cell is useless in practice. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet was the first carrier system to be proposed. The evolution in this domain has been quite slow as the natural mechanisms of mammals against foreign products are hard to overcome. However, lipid-based systems (liposomes and related vesicles have attained reasonable success. The basic preparations and structural features of liposomes and related vesicles as well as their applications are addressed from the chemist's and biochemist's point of view.

  15. Quantum chemical study of the interaction of elemental Hg with small neutral, anionic and cationic Aun (n = 1–6) clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Siddiqui, Shamoon Ahmad; Bouarissa, Nadir; Rasheed, Tabish; Al-Assiri, M.S.

    2013-01-01

    Graphical abstract: Binding energies as a function of cluster size for Au n Hg, Au n Hg + and Au n Hg − complexes. Highlights: ► Hg adsorption of neutral and charged Au n (n = 1–6) clusters has been discussed. ► Size and charged state of cluster significantly affect the Hg adsorption. ► Transfer of electron mainly found from s orbital of Hg to s orbital of Au. - Abstract: Adsorption of elemental mercury (Hg) on small neutral, cationic and anionic gold clusters (Au n , n = 1–6) has been studied by using the density functional theory (DFT). Results of this investigation show that frontier molecular orbital theory is a useful tool to predict the selectivity of Hg adsorption. It is found that adsorption of Hg on neutral, cationic and anionic Au n (n = 1–6) clusters are thermodynamically favorable. The binding energies of Hg on the cationic Au n clusters are greater than those on the neutral and anionic clusters. Natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis indicates that the flow of electrons in the neutral and charged clusters is mainly due to the s orbitals of Hg and Au. Results of NBO analysis also indicate that the binding energy of Hg with Au n clusters is directly proportional to the charge transfer, i.e. greater is the charge transfer, higher is the binding energy

  16. HEAO A-1 observations of x ray emitting clusters of galaxies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Johnson, M.W.

    1990-01-01

    Clusters of galaxies were known to be sources of x ray emission. Statistical analysis of how the x ray emission from clusters is related to other cluster properties was limited by the small number of clusters observed in the x ray region and the completeness of the x ray sample being considered. Both of these limitations are solved by producing a flux-limited catalog of x ray emitting Abell clusters of galaxies and using this catalog to investigate how the x ray emission correlates with other cluster properties. X ray data from the HEAO A-1 experiment were used to search for x ray emission from Abell clusters of galaxies. Selection criteria were chosen to ensure that the resulting catalog was complete and as free as possible from selection effects. The resulting identifications and x ray luminosities were used to check correlations with other cluster properties. Special consideration was given to observational selection effects and consistency checks. The data were consistent with all clusters of galaxies being x ray emitters beyond some limiting luminosity, which depends on cluster richness. Furthermore, the x ray luminosity of clusters is correlated with the richness of the cluster, its galaxy content, and the spacial distribution and galaxy content of galaxies within the cluster. It is concluded that the x ray emission from clusters of galaxies depends not only on the richness of the cluster but also the morphology of the cluster

  17. Ab initio theoretical calculations of the electronic excitation energies of small water clusters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tachikawa, Hiroto; Yabushita, Akihiro; Kawasaki, Masahiro

    2011-12-14

    A direct ab initio molecular dynamics method has been applied to a water monomer and water clusters (H(2)O)(n) (n = 1-3) to elucidate the effects of zero-point energy (ZPE) vibration on the absorption spectra of water clusters. Static ab initio calculations without ZPE showed that the first electronic transitions of (H(2)O)(n), (1)B(1)←(1)A(1), are blue-shifted as a function of cluster size (n): 7.38 eV (n = 1), 7.58 eV (n = 2) and 8.01 eV (n = 3). The inclusion of the ZPE vibration strongly affects the excitation energies of a water dimer, and a long red-tail appears in the range of 6.42-6.90 eV due to the structural flexibility of a water dimer. The ultraviolet photodissociation of water clusters and water ice surfaces is relevant to these results.

  18. The drone ambulance [A-UAS]: golden bullet or just a blank?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van de Voorde, P; Gautama, S; Momont, A; Ionescu, C M; De Paepe, P; Fraeyman, N

    2017-07-01

    Defibrillation within the first minutes after sudden cardiac arrest can save many quality-adjusted life years. Yet, despite enormous investments, 'healthcare' is still unable to provide this for the majority of patients. Emergency Medical Services often have a too long mean response time and many issues surround Public Access Defibrillation programs. In this article we argument that AED-equipped drones could be the 'magic bullet'. They are easily deployed and fast, and have a relatively low operational cost. As such they could rapidly bring an AED next to the victim, irrespective of most geographical circumstances, give visual feedback and situational awareness to the EMS dispatcher and thus assist a bystander to provide better CPR. Although there are many real-life barriers to actual deployment, we argument these might all get solved once we have solved the described technological issues. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Exploring the atomic structure of 1.8 nm monolayer-protected gold clusters with aberration-corrected STEM

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu, Jian; Jian, Nan; Ornelas, Isabel; Pattison, Alexander J. [Nanoscale Physics Research Laboratory, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT (United Kingdom); Lahtinen, Tanja; Salorinne, Kirsi [Department of Chemistry, Nanoscience Center, University of Jyväskylä, FI-40014 Jyväskylä (Finland); Häkkinen, Hannu [Department of Chemistry, Nanoscience Center, University of Jyväskylä, FI-40014 Jyväskylä (Finland); Department of Physics, Nanoscience Center, University of Jyväskylä, FI-40014 Jyväskylä (Finland); Palmer, Richard E., E-mail: richardepalmerwork@yahoo.com [Nanoscale Physics Research Laboratory, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT (United Kingdom)

    2017-05-15

    Monolayer-protected (MP) Au clusters present attractive quantum systems with a range of potential applications e.g. in catalysis. Knowledge of the atomic structure is needed to obtain a full understanding of their intriguing physical and chemical properties. Here we employed aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy (ac-STEM), combined with multislice simulations, to make a round-robin investigation of the atomic structure of chemically synthesised clusters with nominal composition Au{sub 144}(SCH{sub 2}CH{sub 2}Ph){sub 60} provided by two different research groups. The MP Au clusters were “weighed” by the atom counting method, based on their integrated intensities in the high angle annular dark field (HAADF) regime and calibrated exponent of the Z dependence. For atomic structure analysis, we compared experimental images of hundreds of clusters, with atomic resolution, against a variety of structural models. Across the size range 123–151 atoms, only 3% of clusters matched the theoretically predicted Au{sub 144}(SR){sub 60} structure, while a large proportion of the clusters were amorphous (i.e. did not match any model structure). However, a distinct ring-dot feature, characteristic of local icosahedral symmetry, was observed in about 20% of the clusters. - Highlights: • Chemically synthesised gold clusters were “weighed” by atom counting to get true size. • Image simulations show a few percent of clusters have the predicted atomic structure. • But a specific ring-dot feature indicates local icosahedral order in many clusters.

  20. Interaction between Nbp35 and Cfd1 proteins of cytosolic Fe-S cluster assembly reveals a stable complex formation in Entamoeba histolytica.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shadab Anwar

    Full Text Available Iron-Sulfur (Fe-S proteins are involved in many biological functions such as electron transport, photosynthesis, regulation of gene expression and enzymatic activities. Biosynthesis and transfer of Fe-S clusters depend on Fe-S clusters assembly processes such as ISC, SUF, NIF, and CIA systems. Unlike other eukaryotes which possess ISC and CIA systems, amitochondriate Entamoeba histolytica has retained NIF & CIA systems for Fe-S cluster assembly in the cytosol. In the present study, we have elucidated interaction between two proteins of E. histolytica CIA system, Cytosolic Fe-S cluster deficient 1 (Cfd1 protein and Nucleotide binding protein 35 (Nbp35. In-silico analysis showed that structural regions ranging from amino acid residues (P33-K35, G131-V135 and I147-E151 of Nbp35 and (G5-V6, M34-D39 and G46-A52 of Cfd1 are involved in the formation of protein-protein complex. Furthermore, Molecular dynamic (MD simulations study suggested that hydrophobic forces surpass over hydrophilic forces between Nbp35 and Cfd1 and Van-der-Waal interaction plays crucial role in the formation of stable complex. Both proteins were separately cloned, expressed as recombinant fusion proteins in E. coli and purified to homogeneity by affinity column chromatography. Physical interaction between Nbp35 and Cfd1 proteins was confirmed in vitro by co-purification of recombinant Nbp35 with thrombin digested Cfd1 and in vivo by pull down assay and immunoprecipitation. The insilico, in vitro as well as in vivo results prove a stable interaction between these two proteins, supporting the possibility of its involvement in Fe-S cluster transfer to target apo-proteins through CIA machinery in E. histolytica. Our study indicates that initial synthesis of a Fe-S precursor in mitochondria is not necessary for the formation of Cfd1-Nbp35 complex. Thus, Cfd1 and Nbp35 with the help of cytosolic NifS and NifU proteins can participate in the maturation of non-mitosomal Fe-S proteins

  1. K-means clustering versus validation measures: a data-distribution perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiong, Hui; Wu, Junjie; Chen, Jian

    2009-04-01

    K-means is a well-known and widely used partitional clustering method. While there are considerable research efforts to characterize the key features of the K-means clustering algorithm, further investigation is needed to understand how data distributions can have impact on the performance of K-means clustering. To that end, in this paper, we provide a formal and organized study of the effect of skewed data distributions on K-means clustering. Along this line, we first formally illustrate that K-means tends to produce clusters of relatively uniform size, even if input data have varied "true" cluster sizes. In addition, we show that some clustering validation measures, such as the entropy measure, may not capture this uniform effect and provide misleading information on the clustering performance. Viewed in this light, we provide the coefficient of variation (CV) as a necessary criterion to validate the clustering results. Our findings reveal that K-means tends to produce clusters in which the variations of cluster sizes, as measured by CV, are in a range of about 0.3-1.0. Specifically, for data sets with large variation in "true" cluster sizes (e.g., CV > 1.0), K-means reduces variation in resultant cluster sizes to less than 1.0. In contrast, for data sets with small variation in "true" cluster sizes (e.g., CV K-means increases variation in resultant cluster sizes to greater than 0.3. In other words, for the earlier two cases, K-means produces the clustering results which are away from the "true" cluster distributions.

  2. Pronounced cluster-size effects: gas-phase reactivity of bare vanadium cluster cations V(n)+ (n = 1-7) toward methanol.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feyel, Sandra; Schröder, Detlef; Schwarz, Helmut

    2009-05-14

    Mass spectrometric experiments are used to examine the size-dependent interactions of bare vanadium cluster cations V(n)(+) (n = 1-7) with methanol. The reactivity patterns exhibit enormous size effects throughout the range of clusters investigated. For example, dehydrogenation of methanol to produce V(n)OC(+) is only brought about by clusters with n > or = 3. Atomic vanadium cation V(+) also is reactive, but instead of dehydrogenation of the alcohol, expulsions of either methane or a methyl radical take place. In marked contrast, the reaction efficiency of the dinuclear cluster V(2)(+) is extremely low. For the cluster cations V(n)(+) (n = 3-7), complete and efficient dehydrogenation of methanol to produce V(n)OC(+) and two hydrogen molecules prevails. DFT calculations shed light on the mechanism of the dehydrogenation of methanol by the smallest reactive cluster cation V(3)(+) and propose the occurrence of chemisorption concomitant with C-O bond cleavage rather than adsorption of an intact carbon monoxide molecule by the cluster.

  3. How do childhood diagnoses of type 1 diabetes cluster in time?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Colin R Muirhead

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Previous studies have indicated that type 1 diabetes may have an infectious origin. The presence of temporal clustering-an irregular temporal distribution of cases--would provide additional evidence that occurrence may be linked with an agent that displays epidemicity. We tested for the presence and form of temporal clustering using population- based data from northeast England. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study analysed data on children aged 0-14 years diagnosed with type 1 diabetes during the period 1990-2007 and resident in a defined geographical region of northeast England (Northumberland, Newcastle upon Tyne, and North Tyneside. Tests for temporal clustering by time of diagnosis were applied using a modified version of the Potthoff-Whittinghill method. RESULTS: The study analysed 468 cases of children diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. There was highly statistically significant evidence of temporal clustering over periods of a few months and over longer time intervals (p<0.001. The clustering within years did not show a consistent seasonal pattern. CONCLUSIONS: The study adds to the growing body of literature that supports the involvement of infectious agents in the aetiology of type 1 diabetes in children. Specifically it suggests that the precipitating agent or agents involved might be an infection that occurs in "mini-epidemics".

  4. Calibrating the Planck Cluster Mass Scale with Cluster Velocity Dispersions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amodeo, Stefania; Mei, Simona; Stanford, Spencer A.; Bartlett, James G.; Melin, Jean-Baptiste; Lawrence, Charles R.; Chary, Ranga-Ram; Shim, Hyunjin; Marleau, Francine; Stern, Daniel

    2017-08-01

    We measure the Planck cluster mass bias using dynamical mass measurements based on velocity dispersions of a subsample of 17 Planck-detected clusters. The velocity dispersions were calculated using redshifts determined from spectra that were obtained at the Gemini observatory with the GMOS multi-object spectrograph. We correct our estimates for effects due to finite aperture, Eddington bias, and correlated scatter between velocity dispersion and the Planck mass proxy. The result for the mass bias parameter, (1-b), depends on the value of the galaxy velocity bias, {b}{{v}}, adopted from simulations: (1-b)=(0.51+/- 0.09){b}{{v}}3. Using a velocity bias of {b}{{v}}=1.08 from Munari et al., we obtain (1-b)=0.64+/- 0.11, I.e., an error of 17% on the mass bias measurement with 17 clusters. This mass bias value is consistent with most previous weak-lensing determinations. It lies within 1σ of the value that is needed to reconcile the Planck cluster counts with the Planck primary cosmic microwave background constraints. We emphasize that uncertainty in the velocity bias severely hampers the precision of the measurements of the mass bias using velocity dispersions. On the other hand, when we fix the Planck mass bias using the constraints from Penna-Lima et al., based on weak-lensing measurements, we obtain a positive velocity bias of {b}{{v}}≳ 0.9 at 3σ .

  5. Relevant Subspace Clustering

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Müller, Emmanuel; Assent, Ira; Günnemann, Stephan

    2009-01-01

    Subspace clustering aims at detecting clusters in any subspace projection of a high dimensional space. As the number of possible subspace projections is exponential in the number of dimensions, the result is often tremendously large. Recent approaches fail to reduce results to relevant subspace...... clusters. Their results are typically highly redundant, i.e. many clusters are detected multiple times in several projections. In this work, we propose a novel model for relevant subspace clustering (RESCU). We present a global optimization which detects the most interesting non-redundant subspace clusters...... achieves top clustering quality while competing approaches show greatly varying performance....

  6. SU-E-J-98: Radiogenomics: Correspondence Between Imaging and Genetic Features Based On Clustering Analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Harmon, S; Wendelberger, B; Jeraj, R

    2014-01-01

    Purpose: Radiogenomics aims to establish relationships between patient genotypes and imaging phenotypes. An open question remains on how best to integrate information from these distinct datasets. This work investigates if similarities in genetic features across patients correspond to similarities in PET-imaging features, assessed with various clustering algorithms. Methods: [ 18 F]FDG PET data was obtained for 26 NSCLC patients from a public database (TCIA). Tumors were contoured using an in-house segmentation algorithm combining gradient and region-growing techniques; resulting ROIs were used to extract 54 PET-based features. Corresponding genetic microarray data containing 48,778 elements were also obtained for each tumor. Given mismatch in feature sizes, two dimension reduction techniques were also applied to the genetic data: principle component analysis (PCA) and selective filtering of 25 NSCLC-associated genes-ofinterest (GOI). Gene datasets (full, PCA, and GOI) and PET feature datasets were independently clustered using K-means and hierarchical clustering using variable number of clusters (K). Jaccard Index (JI) was used to score similarity of cluster assignments across different datasets. Results: Patient clusters from imaging data showed poor similarity to clusters from gene datasets, regardless of clustering algorithms or number of clusters (JI mean = 0.3429±0.1623). Notably, we found clustering algorithms had different sensitivities to data reduction techniques. Using hierarchical clustering, the PCA dataset showed perfect cluster agreement to the full-gene set (JI =1) for all values of K, and the agreement between the GOI set and the full-gene set decreased as number of clusters increased (JI=0.9231 and 0.5769 for K=2 and 5, respectively). K-means clustering assignments were highly sensitive to data reduction and showed poor stability for different values of K (JI range : 0.2301–1). Conclusion: Using commonly-used clustering algorithms, we found

  7. SU-E-J-98: Radiogenomics: Correspondence Between Imaging and Genetic Features Based On Clustering Analysis

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Harmon, S; Wendelberger, B [University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI (United States); Jeraj, R [University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI (United States); University of Ljubljana (Slovenia)

    2014-06-01

    Purpose: Radiogenomics aims to establish relationships between patient genotypes and imaging phenotypes. An open question remains on how best to integrate information from these distinct datasets. This work investigates if similarities in genetic features across patients correspond to similarities in PET-imaging features, assessed with various clustering algorithms. Methods: [{sup 18}F]FDG PET data was obtained for 26 NSCLC patients from a public database (TCIA). Tumors were contoured using an in-house segmentation algorithm combining gradient and region-growing techniques; resulting ROIs were used to extract 54 PET-based features. Corresponding genetic microarray data containing 48,778 elements were also obtained for each tumor. Given mismatch in feature sizes, two dimension reduction techniques were also applied to the genetic data: principle component analysis (PCA) and selective filtering of 25 NSCLC-associated genes-ofinterest (GOI). Gene datasets (full, PCA, and GOI) and PET feature datasets were independently clustered using K-means and hierarchical clustering using variable number of clusters (K). Jaccard Index (JI) was used to score similarity of cluster assignments across different datasets. Results: Patient clusters from imaging data showed poor similarity to clusters from gene datasets, regardless of clustering algorithms or number of clusters (JI{sub mean}= 0.3429±0.1623). Notably, we found clustering algorithms had different sensitivities to data reduction techniques. Using hierarchical clustering, the PCA dataset showed perfect cluster agreement to the full-gene set (JI =1) for all values of K, and the agreement between the GOI set and the full-gene set decreased as number of clusters increased (JI=0.9231 and 0.5769 for K=2 and 5, respectively). K-means clustering assignments were highly sensitive to data reduction and showed poor stability for different values of K (JI{sub range}: 0.2301–1). Conclusion: Using commonly-used clustering algorithms

  8. Enhanced magnetocrystalline anisotropy in deposited cobalt clusters

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Eastham, D.A.; Denby, P.M.; Kirkman, I.W. [Daresbury Laboratory, Daresbury, Warrington (United Kingdom); Harrison, A.; Whittaker, A.G. [Department of Chemistry, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh (United Kingdom)

    2002-01-28

    The magnetic properties of nanomaterials made by embedding cobalt nanocrystals in a copper matrix have been studied using a SQUID magnetometer. The remanent magnetization at temperatures down to 1.8 K and the RT (room temperature) field-dependent magnetization of 1000- and 8000-atom (average-size) cobalt cluster samples have been measured. In all cases it has been possible to relate the morphology of the material to the magnetic properties. However, it is found that the deposited cluster samples contain a majority of sintered clusters even at cobalt concentrations as low as 5% by volume. The remanent magnetization of the 8000-atom samples was found to be bimodal, consisting of one contribution from spherical particles and one from touching (sintered) clusters. Using a Monte Carlo calculation to simulate the sintering it has been possible to calculate a size distribution which fits the RT superparamagnetic behaviour of the 1000-atom samples. The remanent magnetization for this average size of clusters could then be fitted to a simple model assuming that all the nanoparticles are spherical and have a size distribution which fits the superparamagnetic behaviour. This gives a value for the potential energy barrier height (for reversing the spin direction) of 2.0 {mu}eV/atom which is almost four times the accepted value for face-centred-cubic bulk cobalt. The remanent magnetization for the spherical component of the large-cluster sample could not be fitted with a single barrier height and it is conjectured that this is because the barriers change as a function of cluster size. The average value is 1.5 {mu}eV/atom but presumably this value tends toward the bulk value (0.5 {mu}eV/atom) for the largest clusters in this sample. (author)

  9. Trading strategies in the overnight money market: Correlations and clustering on the e-MID trading platform

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fricke, Daniel

    2012-12-01

    We analyze the correlations in patterns of trading for members of the Italian interbank trading platform e-MID. The trading strategy of a particular member institution is defined as the sequence of (intra-) daily net trading volumes within a certain semester. Based on this definition, we show that there are significant and persistent bilateral correlations between institutions’ trading strategies. In most semesters we find two clusters, with positively (negatively) correlated trading strategies within (between) clusters. We show that the two clusters mostly contain continuous net buyers and net sellers of money, respectively, and that cluster memberships of individual banks are highly persistent. Additionally, we highlight some problems related to our definition of trading strategies. Our findings add further evidence on the fact that preferential lending relationships on the micro-level lead to community structure on the macro-level.

  10. OPEN CLUSTERS AS PROBES OF THE GALACTIC MAGNETIC FIELD. I. CLUSTER PROPERTIES

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hoq, Sadia; Clemens, D. P., E-mail: shoq@bu.edu, E-mail: clemens@bu.edu [Institute for Astrophysical Research, 725 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215 (United States)

    2015-10-15

    Stars in open clusters are powerful probes of the intervening Galactic magnetic field via background starlight polarimetry because they provide constraints on the magnetic field distances. We use 2MASS photometric data for a sample of 31 clusters in the outer Galaxy for which near-IR polarimetric data were obtained to determine the cluster distances, ages, and reddenings via fitting theoretical isochrones to cluster color–magnitude diagrams. The fitting approach uses an objective χ{sup 2} minimization technique to derive the cluster properties and their uncertainties. We found the ages, distances, and reddenings for 24 of the clusters, and the distances and reddenings for 6 additional clusters that were either sparse or faint in the near-IR. The derived ranges of log(age), distance, and E(B−V) were 7.25–9.63, ∼670–6160 pc, and 0.02–1.46 mag, respectively. The distance uncertainties ranged from ∼8% to 20%. The derived parameters were compared to previous studies, and most cluster parameters agree within our uncertainties. To test the accuracy of the fitting technique, synthetic clusters with 50, 100, or 200 cluster members and a wide range of ages were fit. These tests recovered the input parameters within their uncertainties for more than 90% of the individual synthetic cluster parameters. These results indicate that the fitting technique likely provides reliable estimates of cluster properties. The distances derived will be used in an upcoming study of the Galactic magnetic field in the outer Galaxy.

  11. Testing the Large-scale Environments of Cool-core and Non-cool-core Clusters with Clustering Bias

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Medezinski, Elinor; Battaglia, Nicholas; Cen, Renyue; Gaspari, Massimo; Strauss, Michael A.; Spergel, David N. [Department of Astrophysical Sciences, 4 Ivy Lane, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States); Coupon, Jean, E-mail: elinorm@astro.princeton.edu [Department of Astronomy, University of Geneva, ch. dEcogia 16, CH-1290 Versoix (Switzerland)

    2017-02-10

    There are well-observed differences between cool-core (CC) and non-cool-core (NCC) clusters, but the origin of this distinction is still largely unknown. Competing theories can be divided into internal (inside-out), in which internal physical processes transform or maintain the NCC phase, and external (outside-in), in which the cluster type is determined by its initial conditions, which in turn leads to different formation histories (i.e., assembly bias). We propose a new method that uses the relative assembly bias of CC to NCC clusters, as determined via the two-point cluster-galaxy cross-correlation function (CCF), to test whether formation history plays a role in determining their nature. We apply our method to 48 ACCEPT clusters, which have well resolved central entropies, and cross-correlate with the SDSS-III/BOSS LOWZ galaxy catalog. We find that the relative bias of NCC over CC clusters is b = 1.42 ± 0.35 (1.6 σ different from unity). Our measurement is limited by the small number of clusters with core entropy information within the BOSS footprint, 14 CC and 34 NCC clusters. Future compilations of X-ray cluster samples, combined with deep all-sky redshift surveys, will be able to better constrain the relative assembly bias of CC and NCC clusters and determine the origin of the bimodality.

  12. Testing the Large-scale Environments of Cool-core and Non-cool-core Clusters with Clustering Bias

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Medezinski, Elinor; Battaglia, Nicholas; Cen, Renyue; Gaspari, Massimo; Strauss, Michael A.; Spergel, David N.; Coupon, Jean

    2017-01-01

    There are well-observed differences between cool-core (CC) and non-cool-core (NCC) clusters, but the origin of this distinction is still largely unknown. Competing theories can be divided into internal (inside-out), in which internal physical processes transform or maintain the NCC phase, and external (outside-in), in which the cluster type is determined by its initial conditions, which in turn leads to different formation histories (i.e., assembly bias). We propose a new method that uses the relative assembly bias of CC to NCC clusters, as determined via the two-point cluster-galaxy cross-correlation function (CCF), to test whether formation history plays a role in determining their nature. We apply our method to 48 ACCEPT clusters, which have well resolved central entropies, and cross-correlate with the SDSS-III/BOSS LOWZ galaxy catalog. We find that the relative bias of NCC over CC clusters is b = 1.42 ± 0.35 (1.6 σ different from unity). Our measurement is limited by the small number of clusters with core entropy information within the BOSS footprint, 14 CC and 34 NCC clusters. Future compilations of X-ray cluster samples, combined with deep all-sky redshift surveys, will be able to better constrain the relative assembly bias of CC and NCC clusters and determine the origin of the bimodality.

  13. Asymmetric ejecta of cool supergiants and hypergiants in the massive cluster Westerlund 1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Andrews, H.; Fenech, D.; Prinja, R. K.; Clark, J. S.; Hindson, L.

    2018-06-01

    We report new 5.5 GHz radio observations of the massive star cluster Westerlund 1, taken by the Australia Telescope Compact Array, detecting nine of the ten yellow hypergiants (YHGs) and red supergiants (RSGs) within the cluster. Eight of nine sources are spatially resolved. The nebulae associated with the YHGs Wd1-4a, -12a, and -265 demonstrate a cometary morphology - the first time this phenomenon has been observed for such stars. This structure is also echoed in the ejecta of the RSGs Wd1-20 and -26; in each case the cometary tails are directed away from the cluster core. The nebular emission around the RSG Wd1-237 is less collimated than these systems but once again appears more prominent in the hemisphere facing the cluster. Considered as a whole, the nebular morphologies provide compelling evidence for sculpting via a physical agent associated with Westerlund 1, such as a cluster wind.

  14. THE MASSIVE AND DISTANT CLUSTERS OF WISE SURVEY. II. INITIAL SPECTROSCOPIC CONFIRMATION OF z ∼ 1 GALAXY CLUSTERS SELECTED FROM 10,000 deg2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stanford, S. A.; Gonzalez, Anthony H.; Gettings, Daniel P.; Brodwin, Mark; Eisenhardt, Peter R. M.; Stern, Daniel; Wylezalek, Dominika

    2014-01-01

    We present optical and infrared imaging and optical spectroscopy of galaxy clusters which were identified as part of an all-sky search for high-redshift galaxy clusters, the Massive and Distant Clusters of WISE Survey (MaDCoWS). The initial phase of MaDCoWS combined infrared data from the all-sky data release of the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) with optical data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey to select probable z ∼ 1 clusters of galaxies over an area of 10,000 deg 2 . Our spectroscopy confirms 19 new clusters at 0.7 < z < 1.3, half of which are at z > 1, demonstrating the viability of using WISE to identify high-redshift galaxy clusters. The next phase of MaDCoWS will use the greater depth of the AllWISE data release to identify even higher redshift cluster candidates

  15. A Massive Cluster in its Youth: the Fundamental Plane, Kinematics, and Ages for Cluster Galaxies at z = 1.80 in JKCS 041

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prichard, Laura Jane; Davies, Roger L.; Beifiori, Alessandra; Chan, Jeffrey C. C.; Cappellari, Michele; Houghton, Ryan C. W.; Mendel, Trevor; Bender, Ralf; Galametz, Audrey; Saglia, Roberto P.; Smith, Russell; Stott, John P.; Wilman, David J.; Lewis, Ian J.; Sharples, Ray; Wegner, Michael

    2018-01-01

    Galaxy clusters are the largest gravitationally bound structures in the Universe, and we know that early type galaxies (ETGs) are more common towards their centers. Clusters of galaxies are increasingly rare at early times, but are essential for understanding the formation of these massive structures and how they alter the fate of their member galaxies. However, long integration times are required to constrain the stellar properties of these distant cluster ETGs. Now with the advent of the multiplexed near-infrared integral field instrument, the K-band Multi-Object Spectrograph (KMOS) on the Very Large Telescope, we can target the ETGs in these valuable high-redshift clusters more efficiently than ever. The KMOS guaranteed observing program, the KMOS Cluster Survey (KCS; P.I.s Bender & Davies), has enabled a study of cluster galaxies in overdensities spanning z=1-2 through absorption-line spectroscopy obtained from 20-hour integrations. We will present spectra for 16 galaxies in the furthest KCS overdensity, JKCS 041, an ETG-rich cluster at z=1.80. We measured seven velocity dispersions from the quiescent galaxy spectra, expanding the sample of like measurements in the literature at or above z=1.80 by more than 40%. Through the analysis of Hubble Space Telescope photometry and deep absorption-line spectroscopy, we were able to construct the highest redshift fundamental plane (FP) within a single system for galaxies in JKCS 041. From the redshift evolution of the FP zero-point, we derived a mean age of the galaxies in this cluster of 1.4 +/- 0.2 Gyrs. We determined relative velocities of the galaxies to study the three-dimensional structure of this overdensity. We noticed from the dynamics of JKCS 041 that a group of galaxies was infalling towards the cluster center. When measuring FP ages for the infalling group, we found these galaxies had significantly younger mean ages (0.3 +/- 0.2 Gyrs) than the other galaxies in the cluster (2.0 +0.3/-0.1 Gyrs). Based on the

  16. Six-monthly vitamin A from 1 to 6 years of age DEVTA: cluster ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Six-monthly vitamin A from 1 to 6 years of age DEVTA: cluster-randomised trial in 1 million children in Northern India · Pre-school rural Northern India · DEVTA: cluster-randomised trial in 8000+ villages (ie, AWCs) in 72 clusters (ie, blocks) · DEVTA vitamin A schedule, 05/1999 - 04/2004 · DEVTA: biomedical monitoring.

  17. iterClust: a statistical framework for iterative clustering analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ding, Hongxu; Wang, Wanxin; Califano, Andrea

    2018-03-22

    In a scenario where populations A, B1 and B2 (subpopulations of B) exist, pronounced differences between A and B may mask subtle differences between B1 and B2. Here we present iterClust, an iterative clustering framework, which can separate more pronounced differences (e.g. A and B) in starting iterations, followed by relatively subtle differences (e.g. B1 and B2), providing a comprehensive clustering trajectory. iterClust is implemented as a Bioconductor R package. andrea.califano@columbia.edu, hd2326@columbia.edu. Supplementary information is available at Bioinformatics online.

  18. Magnetic phase transition in 2 nm NixCu1-x (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) clusters

    KAUST Repository

    Mokkath, Junais Habeeb

    2014-04-17

    NixCu1-x (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) clusters with a diameter of 2 nm (459 atoms) are modeled by a combination of basin hopping global sampling and reoptimization within spin-polarized density functional theory. The favorable structures for different Ni/Cu ratios are obtained by probing the energy landscape of face-centered cubic clusters. A sharp phase transition from nonmagnetic to ferromagnetic behavior is discovered above x = 0.4 and explained in terms of the distribution of the Ni atoms in the clusters. Small Cu magnetic moments are induced by proximity. © 2014 American Chemical Society.

  19. Trimming and clustering sugarcane ESTs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guilherme P. Telles

    2001-12-01

    Full Text Available The original clustering procedure adopted in the Sugarcane Expressed Sequence Tag project (SUCEST had many problems, for instance too many clusters, the presence of ribosomal sequences, etc. We therefore redesigned the clustering procedure entirely, including a much more careful initial trimming of the reads. In this paper the new trimming and clustering strategies are described in detail and we give the new official figures for the project, 237,954 expressed sequence tags and 43,141 clusters.O método de clustering adotado no Projeto SUCEST (Sugarcane EST Project tinha vários problemas (muitos clusters, presença de seqüências de ribossomo etc. Nós assumimos a tarefa de reprojetar todo o processo de clustering, propondo uma "limpeza" inicial mais cuidadosa das seqüências. Neste artigo as estratégias de limpeza das seqüências e de clustering são descritas em detalhe, incluindo os números oficiais do projeto (237,954 ESTs e 43,141 clusters.

  20. A New Globular Cluster in the Area of VVVX

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bica, E.; Minniti, D.; Bonatto, C.; Hempel, M.

    2018-06-01

    We communicate the discovery of a new globular cluster in the Galaxy that was first detected on WISE/2MASS images and is now confirmed with VVVX photometry. It is a Palomar-like cluster projected at ℓ = 359.15°, b = 5.73°, and may be related to the bulge. We derive an absolute magnitude of MV ≈ -3.3, thus being an underluminous globular cluster. Our analyses provide a reddening of E(B - V) = 1.08 ± 0.18 and a distance to the Sun d⊙ = 6.3 ± 1 kpc, which implies a current position in the bulge volume. The estimated metallicity is [Fe/H] = -1.5 ± 0.25. It adds to the recently discovered faint globular cluster (Minniti 22) and candidates found with VVV, building up expectations of ≈50 globular clusters yet to be discovered in the bulge. We also communicate the discovery of an old open cluster in the same VVVX tile as the globular cluster. The VVVX photometry provided E(B - V) = 0.62 ± 0.1, d⊙ = 7.6 ± 1 kpc, and an age of 1.5 ± 0.3 Gyr. With a height from the plane of ≈0.8 kpc, it adds to nine Gyr-class clusters recently discovered within 0.8 ⩽ Z ⩽ 2.2 kpc, as recently probed in the single VVV tile b201. We suggest that these findings may be disclosing the thick disk at the bulge, which so far has no open cluster counterpart, and hardly any individual star. Thus, the VVV and VVVX surveys are opening new windows for follow-up studies, to employ present and future generations of large aperture telescopes.

  1. BioCluster: Tool for Identification and Clustering of Enterobacteriaceae Based on Biochemical Data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ahmed Abdullah

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Presumptive identification of different Enterobacteriaceae species is routinely achieved based on biochemical properties. Traditional practice includes manual comparison of each biochemical property of the unknown sample with known reference samples and inference of its identity based on the maximum similarity pattern with the known samples. This process is labor-intensive, time-consuming, error-prone, and subjective. Therefore, automation of sorting and similarity in calculation would be advantageous. Here we present a MATLAB-based graphical user interface (GUI tool named BioCluster. This tool was designed for automated clustering and identification of Enterobacteriaceae based on biochemical test results. In this tool, we used two types of algorithms, i.e., traditional hierarchical clustering (HC and the Improved Hierarchical Clustering (IHC, a modified algorithm that was developed specifically for the clustering and identification of Enterobacteriaceae species. IHC takes into account the variability in result of 1–47 biochemical tests within this Enterobacteriaceae family. This tool also provides different options to optimize the clustering in a user-friendly way. Using computer-generated synthetic data and some real data, we have demonstrated that BioCluster has high accuracy in clustering and identifying enterobacterial species based on biochemical test data. This tool can be freely downloaded at http://microbialgen.du.ac.bd/biocluster/.

  2. Electronic structures and thermochemical properties of the small silicon-doped boron clusters B(n)Si (n=1-7) and their anions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tai, Truong Ba; Kadłubański, Paweł; Roszak, Szczepan; Majumdar, Devashis; Leszczynski, Jerzy; Nguyen, Minh Tho

    2011-11-18

    We perform a systematic investigation on small silicon-doped boron clusters B(n)Si (n=1-7) in both neutral and anionic states using density functional (DFT) and coupled-cluster (CCSD(T)) theories. The global minima of these B(n)Si(0/-) clusters are characterized together with their growth mechanisms. The planar structures are dominant for small B(n)Si clusters with n≤5. The B(6)Si molecule represents a geometrical transition with a quasi-planar geometry, and the first 3D global minimum is found for the B(7)Si cluster. The small neutral B(n)Si clusters can be formed by substituting the single boron atom of B(n+1) by silicon. The Si atom prefers the external position of the skeleton and tends to form bonds with its two neighboring B atoms. The larger B(7)Si cluster is constructed by doping Si-atoms on the symmetry axis of the B(n) host, which leads to the bonding of the silicon to the ring boron atoms through a number of hyper-coordination. Calculations of the thermochemical properties of B(n)Si(0/-) clusters, such as binding energies (BE), heats of formation at 0 K (ΔH(f)(0)) and 298 K (ΔH(f)([298])), adiabatic (ADE) and vertical (VDE) detachment energies, and dissociation energies (D(e)), are performed using the high accuracy G4 and complete basis-set extrapolation (CCSD(T)/CBS) approaches. The differences of heats of formation (at 0 K) between the G4 and CBS approaches for the B(n)Si clusters vary in the range of 0.0-4.6 kcal mol(-1). The largest difference between two approaches for ADE values is 0.15 eV. Our theoretical predictions also indicate that the species B(2)Si, B(4)Si, B(3)Si(-) and B(7)Si(-) are systems with enhanced stability, exhibiting each a double (σ and π) aromaticity. B(5)Si(-) and B(6)Si are doubly antiaromatic (σ and π) with lower stability. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  3. Environment and air pollution like gun and bullet for low-income countries: war for better health and wealth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zou, Xiang; Azam, Muhammad; Islam, Talat; Zaman, Khalid

    2016-02-01

    The objective of the study is to examine the impact of environmental indicators and air pollution on "health" and "wealth" for the low-income countries. The study used a number of promising variables including arable land, fossil fuel energy consumption, population density, and carbon dioxide emissions that simultaneously affect the health (i.e., health expenditures per capita) and wealth (i.e., GDP per capita) of the low-income countries. The general representation for low-income countries has shown by aggregate data that consist of 39 observations from the period of 1975-2013. The study decomposes the data set from different econometric tests for managing robust inferences. The study uses temporal forecasting for the health and wealth model by a vector error correction model (VECM) and an innovation accounting technique. The results show that environment and air pollution is the menace for low-income countries' health and wealth. Among environmental indicators, arable land has the largest variance to affect health and wealth for the next 10-year period, while air pollution exerts the least contribution to change health and wealth of low-income countries. These results indicate the prevalence of war situation, where environment and air pollution become visible like "gun" and "bullet" for low-income countries. There are required sound and effective macroeconomic policies to combat with the environmental evils that affect the health and wealth of the low-income countries.

  4. The Gemini/HST Galaxy Cluster Project: Redshift 0.2–1.0 Cluster Sample, X-Ray Data, and Optical Photometry Catalog

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jørgensen, Inger; Chiboucas, Kristin; Hibon, Pascale; Nielsen, Louise D.; Takamiya, Marianne

    2018-04-01

    The Gemini/HST Galaxy Cluster Project (GCP) covers 14 z = 0.2–1.0 clusters with X-ray luminosity of {L}500≥slant {10}44 {erg} {{{s}}}-1 in the 0.1–2.4 keV band. In this paper, we provide homogeneously calibrated X-ray luminosities, masses, and radii, and we present the complete catalog of the ground-based photometry for the GCP clusters. The clusters were observed with either Gemini North or South in three or four of the optical passbands g‧, r‧, i‧, and z‧. The photometric catalog includes consistently calibrated total magnitudes, colors, and geometrical parameters. The photometry reaches ≈25 mag in the passband closest to the rest-frame B band. We summarize comparisons of our photometry with data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We describe the sample selection for our spectroscopic observations, and establish the calibrations to obtain rest-frame magnitudes and colors. Finally, we derive the color–magnitude relations for the clusters, and briefly discuss these in the context of evolution with redshift. Consistent with our results based on spectroscopic data, the color–magnitude relations support passive evolution of the red sequence galaxies. The absence of change in the slope with redshift constrains the allowable age variation along the red sequence to <0.05 dex between the brightest cluster galaxies and those four magnitudes fainter. This paper serves as the main reference for the GCP cluster and galaxy selection, X-ray data, and ground-based photometry.

  5. Electron attenuation in free, neutral ethane clusters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winkler, M; Myrseth, V; Harnes, J; Børve, K J

    2014-10-28

    The electron effective attenuation length (EAL) in free, neutral ethane clusters has been determined at 40 eV kinetic energy by combining carbon 1s x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and theoretical lineshape modeling. More specifically, theory is employed to form model spectra on a grid in cluster size (N) and EAL (λ), allowing N and λ to be determined by optimizing the goodness-of-fit χ(2)(N, λ) between model and observed spectra. Experimentally, the clusters were produced in an adiabatic-expansion setup using helium as the driving gas, spanning a range of 100-600 molecules in mean cluster size. The effective attenuation length was determined to be 8.4 ± 1.9 Å, in good agreement with an independent estimate of 10 Å formed on the basis of molecular electron-scattering data and Monte Carlo simulations. The aggregation state of the clusters as well as the cluster temperature and its importance to the derived EAL value are discussed in some depth.

  6. THE GEMINI/HST CLUSTER PROJECT: STRUCTURAL AND PHOTOMETRIC PROPERTIES OF GALAXIES IN THREE z = 0.28-0.89 CLUSTERS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chiboucas, Kristin; Joergensen, Inger; Barr, Jordi; Collobert, Maela; Davies, Roger; Flint, Kathleen

    2009-01-01

    We present the data processing and analysis techniques we are using to determine the structural and photometric properties of galaxies in our Gemini/HST Galaxy Cluster Project sample. The goal of this study is to understand cluster galaxy evolution in terms of scaling relations and structural properties of cluster galaxies at redshifts 0.15 1/4 law and Sersic function two-dimensional surface brightness profiles to each of the galaxies in our sample. Using simulated galaxies, we test how the assumed profile affects the derived parameters and how the uncertainties affect our Fundamental Plane results. We find that while fitting galaxies that have Sersic index n 1/4 law profiles systematically overestimates the galaxy radius and flux, the combination of profile parameters that enter the Fundamental Plane has uncertainties that are small. Average systematic offsets and associated random uncertainties in magnitude and log r e for n>2 galaxies fitted with r 1/4 law profiles are -0.1 ± 0.3 and 0.1 ± 0.2, respectively. The combination of effective radius and surface brightness, log r e - βlog (I) e , that enters the Fundamental Plane produces offsets smaller than -0.02 ± 0.10. This systematic error is insignificant and independent of galaxy magnitude or size. A catalog of photometry and surface brightness profile parameters is presented for three of the clusters in our sample, RX J0142.0+2131, RX J0152.7-1357, and RX J1226.9+3332 at redshifts 0.28, 0.83, and 0.89, respectively.

  7. On non-equilibrium atmospheric pressure plasma jets and plasma bullet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Xinpei

    2012-10-01

    Because of the enhanced plasma chemistry, atmospheric pressure nonequilibrium plasmas (APNPs) have been widely studied for several emerging applications such as biomedical applications. For the biomedical applications, plasma jet devices, which generate plasma in open space (surrounding air) rather than in confined discharge gaps only, have lots of advantages over the traditional dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) devices. For example, it can be used for root canal disinfection, which can't be realized by the traditional plasma device. On the other hand, currently, the working gases of most of the plasma jet devices are noble gases or the mixtures of the noble gases with small amount of O2, or air. If ambient air is used as the working gas, several serious difficulties are encountered in the plasma generation process. Amongst these are high gas temperatures and disrupting instabilities. In this presentation, firstly, a brief review of the different cold plasma jets developed to date is presented. Secondly, several different plasma jet devices developed in our lab are reported. The effects of various parameters on the plasma jets are discussed. Finally, one of the most interesting phenomena of APNP-Js, the plasma bullet is discussed and its behavior is described. References: [1] X. Lu, M. Laroussi, V. Puech, Plasma Sources Sci. Technol. 21, 034005 (2012); [2] Y. Xian, X. Lu, S. Wu, P. Chu, and Y. Pan, Appl. Phys. Lett. 100, 123702 (2012); [3] X. Pei, X. Lu, J. Liu, D. Liu, Y. Yang, K. Ostrikov, P. Chu, and Y. Pan, J. Phys. D 45, 165205 (2012).

  8. Galaxy clusters in the SDSS Stripe 82 based on photometric redshifts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Durret, F.; Adami, C.; Bertin, E.; Hao, J.; Márquez, I.

    2015-01-01

    Based on a recent photometric redshift galaxy catalogue, we have searched for galaxy clusters in the Stripe ~82 region of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey by applying the Adami & MAzure Cluster FInder (AMACFI). Extensive tests were made to fine-tune the AMACFI parameters and make the cluster detection as reliable as possible. The same method was applied to the Millennium simulation to estimate our detection efficiency and the approximate masses of the detected clusters. Considering all the cluster galaxies (i.e. within a 1 Mpc radius of the cluster to which they belong and with a photoz differing by less than 0.05 from that of the cluster), we stacked clusters in various redshift bins to derive colour-magnitude diagrams and galaxy luminosity functions (GLFs). For each galaxy with absolute magnitude brighter than -19.0 in the r band, we computed the disk and spheroid components by applying SExtractor, and by stacking clusters we determined how the disk-to-spheroid flux ratio varies with cluster redshift and mass. We also detected 3663 clusters in the redshift range 0.15< z<0.70, with estimated mean masses between 10"1"3 and a few 10"1"4 solar masses. Furthermore, by stacking the cluster galaxies in various redshift bins, we find a clear red sequence in the (g'-r') versus r' colour-magnitude diagrams, and the GLFs are typical of clusters, though with a possible contamination from field galaxies. The morphological analysis of the cluster galaxies shows that the fraction of late-type to early-type galaxies shows an increase with redshift (particularly in high mass clusters) and a decrease with detection level, i.e. cluster mass. From the properties of the cluster galaxies, the majority of the candidate clusters detected here seem to be real clusters with typical cluster properties.

  9. Universality and clustering in 1 + 1 dimensional superstring-bit models

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bergman, O.; Thorn, C.B.

    1996-01-01

    We construct a 1+1 dimensional superstring-bit model for D=3 Type IIB superstring. This low dimension model escapes the problem encountered in higher dimension models: (1) It possesses full Galilean supersymmetry; (2) For noninteracting Polymers of bits, the exactly soluble linear superpotential describing bit interactions is in a large universality class of superpotentials which includes ones bounded at spatial infinity; (3) The latter are used to construct a superstring-bit model with the clustering properties needed to define an S-matrix for closed polymers of superstring-bits

  10. QUALITY OF RAW, EXTRUDED AND PARBOILED RICE BRAN QUALIDADE DE FARELOS DE ARROZ CRU, EXTRUSADO E PARBOILIZADO

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Valácia Lemes Silva-Lobo

    2010-10-01

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    O arroz é o segundo cereal de maior consumo no mundo, sendo a produção mundial estimada em 661,3 milhões de toneladas, em 2008. O farelo, resultante do beneficiamento do grão, para obtenção do arroz polido ou parboilizado polido, possui quantidades significativas de carboidratos, proteínas, lipídios, fibras insolúveis, vitaminas e minerais. Este trabalho

  11. The structure and energetic of AlAsn (n = 1-15) clusters: A first-principles study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Guo Ling

    2010-01-01

    Geometric structures of AlAs n (n = 1-15) clusters are reported. The binding energy, dissociation energy, stability of these clusters are studied with the three-parameter hybrid generalized gradient approximation (GGA) due to Becke-Lee-Yang-Parr (B3LYP). Ionization potentials, electron affinities, hardness, and static polarizabilities are calculated for the ground-state structures within the same method. The growth pattern for AlAs n (n = 6-15) clusters is Al-substituted pure As n+1 clusters and it keeps the similar frameworks of the most stable As n+1 clusters (for example AlAs 6 , AlAs 7 , AlAs 9 , AlAs 14 and AlAs 15 clusters) or capping the different sides of the low-lying geometry of As n clusters (for example AlAs 8 , AlAs 10 , AlAs 11 , and AlAs 12 clusters). The Al atom prefer to occupy a peripheral position for n n (n = 1-5, 13) clusters. The odd-even oscillations from AlAs n (n = 5-15) in the dissociation energy, the second-order energy differences, the HOMO-LUMO gaps, the electron affinity, and the hardness are more pronounced. The stability analysis based on the energies clearly shows the AlAs n clusters from n = 5 with an even number of valence electrons are more stable than clusters with odd number of valence electrons.

  12. Space, time and color in hadron production via e+ e- --> Z$^{0}$ and e+ e- --> W$^{+}$W$^{-}$

    CERN Document Server

    Ellis, John R.; Ellis, John; Geiger, Klaus

    1996-01-01

    The time-evolution of jets in hadronic e+ e- events at LEP is investigated in both position- and momentum-space, with emphasis on effects due to color flow and particle correlations. We address dynamical aspects of the four simultanously-evolving, cross-talking parton cascades that appear in the reaction e+ e- --> .gamma./Z.sup(0) --> W+W- --> q1 q~2 q3 q~4, and compare with the familiar two-parton cascades in e+ e- --> Z.sup(0) --> q1 q~2. We use a QCD statistical transport approach, in which the multiparticle final state is treated as an evolving mixture of partons and hadrons, whose proportions are controlled by their local space-time geography via standard perturbative QCD parton shower evolution and a phenomenological model for non-perturbative parton-cluster formation followed by cluster decays into hadrons. Our numerical simulations exhibit a characteristic "inside-outside" evolution simultanously in position and momentum space. We compare three different model treatments of color flow, and find large ...

  13. First-principles calculations for titanium monoxide clusters TinO (n = 1–9)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lu Zhanghui; Cao Juexian

    2008-01-01

    Based on the density-functional theory, this paper studies the geometric and magnetic properties of Ti n O (n = 1–9) clusters. The resulting geometries show that the oxygen atom remains on the surface of clusters and does not change the geometry of Ti n significantly. The binding energy, second-order energy differences with the size of clusters show that Ti 7 O cluster is endowed with special stability. The stability of Ti n O clusters is validated by the recent time-of-flight mass spectra. The total magnetic moments for Ti n O clusters with n = 1–4, 8–9 are constant with 2 and drop to zero at n = 5–7. The local magnetic moment and charge partition of each atom, and the density of states are discussed. The magnetic moment of the Ti n O is clearly dominated by the localized 3d electrons of Ti atoms while the oxygen atom contributes a very small amount of spin in Ti n O clusters. (atomic and molecular physics)

  14. Dipole cluster states in light, medium heavy and heavy nuclei

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gai, Moshe

    1984-01-01

    Tests of the Vibron cluster model in sup(18)O, sup(218)Ra and sup(156)Yb are reported, as well as a test in progress in sup(52)Ti. Low lying negative parity states which appear to be members of rotational bands of alternating parity states with enhanced B(E1) intraband deexcitation rates are found. The cluster band, within the model framework, is also characterized by large alpha decay widths and enhanced radiative deexcitation widths of several multipolarities B(E1), B(E2), B(E3). A discussion of the model and the underlying, newly suggested dipole degree of freedom is presented. (author)

  15. First principles study of structural, electronic and magnetic properties of SnGe n (0, ±1) ( n = 1–17) clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Djaadi, Soumaia; Eddine Aiadi, Kamal; Mahtout, Sofiane

    2018-04-01

    The structures, relative stability and magnetic properties of pure Ge n +1, neutral cationic and anionic SnGe n (n = 1–17) clusters have been investigated by using the first principles density functional theory implemented in SIESTA packages. We find that with the increasing of cluster size, the Ge n +1 and SnGe n (0, ±1) clusters tend to adopt compact structures. It has been also found that the Sn atom occupied a peripheral position for SnGe n clusters when n 12. The structural and electronic properties such as optimized geometries, fragmentation energy, binding energy per atom, HOMO–LUMO gaps and second-order differences in energy of the pure Ge n +1 and SnGe n clusters in their ground state are calculated and analyzed. All isomers of neutral SnGe n clusters are generally nonmagnetic except for n = 1 and 4, where the total spin magnetic moments is 2μ b. The total (DOS) and partial density of states of these clusters have been calculated to understand the origin of peculiar magnetic properties. The cluster size dependence of vertical ionization potentials, vertical electronic affinities, chemical hardness, adiabatic electron affinities and adiabatic ionization potentials have been calculated and discussed.

  16. Destratification efficiency by hypolimnitic water lifter with air bullets. Kihodan wo mochiita shinsosui yosui shisetsu ni yoru mitsudo seiso no kongo koritsu

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ikeda, H; Suga, K [Utsunomiya University, Tochigi (Japan). Faculty of Engineering; Asaeda, T [Saitama University, Saitama (Japan). Faculty of Engineering

    1994-02-21

    The intermittent aeration and circulation method is used frequently to destruct temperature stratification in a reservoir to prevent it from eutrophication. This method uses a cylinder erected in water, into which air bullets are shot out intermittently to circulate and mix heavier water mass upward. The present study has performed numerical analysis on the process to mix density stratifications by operating an intermittent water lifter cylinder for an extended period of time, and discussed responses of each factor to variation. The numerical computation has been carried out according to the equation of motion for water and air in the water lifter cylinder, and the numerical model that hypothesizes the double plume after air bubbles have departed from the water lifter cylinder. The result indicated that the amount of hypolimnitic water lifted against the amount of air injected can be expressed by an empirical formula that uses only the relative air bullet volumes. An evaluation formula for the water lifting efficiency has also been derived. It has been found for the stratification mixing that trends in the mixing efficiency can be identified by two parameters of dimensionless air bubble amount and stratification strength. 17 refs., 11 figs., 4 tabs.

  17. CAUGHT IN THE ACT: THE ASSEMBLY OF MASSIVE CLUSTER GALAXIES AT z = 1.62

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lotz, Jennifer M.; Ferguson, Henry C.; Grogin, Norman; Koekemoer, Anton M.; Papovich, Casey; Tran, Kim-Vy; Faber, S. M.; Guo Yicheng; Kocevski, Dale; Lee, Kyoung-Soo; McIntosh, Daniel; Momcheva, Ivelina; Rudnick, Gregory; Saintonge, Amelie; Van der Wel, Arjen; Willmer, Christopher

    2013-01-01

    We present the recent merger history of massive galaxies in a spectroscopically confirmed proto-cluster at z = 1.62. Using Hubble Space Telescope WFC3 near-infrared imaging from the Cosmic Assembly Near-infrared Deep Extragalactic Legacy Survey, we select cluster and z ∼ 1.6 field galaxies with M star ≥ 3 × 10 10 M ☉ , to determine the frequency of double nuclei or close companions within projected separations less than 20 kpc co-moving. We find that four out of five spectroscopically confirmed massive proto-cluster galaxies have double nuclei, and 57 +13 -14 % of all M star ≥ 3 × 10 10 M ☉ cluster candidates are observed in either close pair systems or have double nuclei. In contrast, only 11% ± 3% of the field galaxies are observed in close pair/double nuclei systems. After correcting for the contribution from random projections, the implied merger rate per massive galaxy in the proto-cluster is ∼3-10 times higher than the merger rate of massive field galaxies at z ∼ 1.6. Close pairs in the cluster have minor merger stellar mass ratios (M primary : M satellite ≥ 4), while the field pairs consist of both major and minor mergers. At least half of the cluster mergers are gas-poor, as indicated by their red colors and low 24 μm fluxes. Two of the double-nucleated cluster members have X-ray detected active galactic nuclei with L x > 10 43 erg s –1 , and are strong candidates for dual or offset super-massive black holes. We conclude that the massive z = 1.62 proto-cluster galaxies are undergoing accelerated assembly via minor mergers, and discuss the implications for galaxy evolution in proto-cluster environments

  18. The x-ray luminous galaxy cluster population at 0.9 < z ≲ 1.6 as revealed by the XMM-Newton Distant Cluster Project

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fassbender, R; Böhringer, H; Nastasi, A; Šuhada, R; Mühlegger, M; Mohr, J J; Pierini, D; De Hoon, A; Kohnert, J; Lamer, G; Schwope, A D; Pratt, G W; Quintana, H; Rosati, P; Santos, J S

    2011-01-01

    We present the largest sample to date of spectroscopically confirmed x-ray luminous high-redshift galaxy clusters comprising 22 systems in the range 0.9 2 of non-contiguous deep archival XMM-Newton coverage, of which 49.4 deg 2 are part of the core survey with a quantifiable selection function and 17.7 deg 2 are classified as ‘gold’ coverage as the starting point for upcoming cosmological applications. Distant cluster candidates were followed up with moderately deep optical and near-infrared imaging in at least two bands to photometrically identify the cluster galaxy populations and obtain redshift estimates based on the colors of simple stellar population models. We test and calibrate the most promising redshift estimation techniques based on the R-z and z-H colors for efficient distant cluster identifications and find a good redshift accuracy performance of the z-H color out to at least z ∼ 1.5, while the redshift evolution of the R-z color leads to increasingly large uncertainties at z ≳ 0.9. Photometrically identified high-z systems are spectroscopically confirmed with VLT/FORS 2 with a minimum of three concordant cluster member redshifts. We present first details of two newly identified clusters, XDCP J0338.5+0029 at z = 0.916 and XDCP J0027.2+1714 at z = 0.959, and investigate the x-ray properties of SpARCS J003550-431224 at z = 1.335, which shows evidence for ongoing major merger activity along the line-of-sight. We provide x-ray properties and luminosity-based total mass estimates for the full sample of 22 high-z clusters, of which 17 are at z ⩾ 1.0 and seven populate the highest redshift bin at z > 1.3. The median system mass of the sample is M 200 ≃ 2 × 10 14 M ⊙ , while the probed mass range for the distant clusters spans approximately (0.7-7) × 10 14 M ⊙ . The majority (>70%) of the x-ray selected clusters show rather regular x-ray morphologies, albeit in most cases with a discernible elongation along one axis. In contrast to

  19. BVI photometry of star clusters in M33

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Christian, C.A.; Schommer, R.A.

    1988-01-01

    CCD images of candidate star clusters in M33 were obtained for 13 fields in the B, V, and I bandpasses. The integrated visual colors and magnitudes are used to study the clusters, and evidence for extended giant branches and possibly carbon stars in several of the intermediate-aged clusters is presented. The colors, magnitudes, and positions are used to analyze stellar population of M33 and confirm the existence of massive star clusters with a 0.1-10-Gyr age range. That is, the cluster system of M33 shares some similarities to that of the Magellanic Clouds in that relatively massive clusters are found at all ages. In addition, more than 20 true (i.e., old, massive) globulars are identified. A substantial population of intermediate-color clusters are found, and it is argued that the cluster-formation rate for clusters less than 10 Gyr old may be more continuous in M33 than in the Magellanic Clouds. The chemical evolution of M33 as traced by the clusters suggests that an abundance gradient existed at all ages, in that the outer regions of the disk (i.e., R greater than 10 arcmin or 2 kpc) follow a slow enhancement history similar to the SMC, while the inner regions were enriched more dramatically. 59 references

  20. Bullet scintigraphy: can gamma camera be used for depleted uranium accident measurements?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spaic, R.; Markovic, S.; Pavlovic, S.; Radic, Z.; Pavlovic, R.; Ajdinovic, B.; Baskot, B.; Djurovic, B.

    2002-01-01

    The aim of this study was to see could gamma cameras be used for measurement of internal contamination with depleted uranium. Radioactive waste depleted uranium, which is by-product from the production of enriched fuel for nuclear rectors and weapons now, is used for manufacture bullets, which are used in Iraq, Republic of Srpska and Yugoslavia. In this paper is measured minimum detectable activity (MDA) of gamma cameras for depleted uranium, iodine and technetium. For detection of the depleted uranium are used low energy X-rays, energy of 100 keV with 20% windows width. About 40% of gamma emissions of the depleted uranium are in these limits. Measured MDA activities 50-100 Bq for depleted uranium, iodine and technetium are about then times more then same for WBC (5 Bq). Gamma cameras can be used for relatively measurement of depleted uranium activity, what can be used for absorbed dose estimation. Detection of low level internal contamination with depleted uranium can be done with gamma cameras. (authors)

  1. Direct evidence for radiative charge transfer after inner-shell excitation and ionization of large clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hans, Andreas; Stumpf, Vasili; Holzapfel, Xaver; Wiegandt, Florian; Schmidt, Philipp; Ozga, Christian; Reiß, Philipp; Ben Ltaief, Ltaief; Küstner-Wetekam, Catmarna; Jahnke, Till; Ehresmann, Arno; Demekhin, Philipp V.; Gokhberg, Kirill; Knie, André

    2018-01-01

    We directly observe radiative charge transfer (RCT) in Ne clusters by dispersed vacuum-ultraviolet photon detection. The doubly ionized Ne2+-{{{N}}{{e}}}n-1 initial states of RCT are populated after resonant 1s-3p photoexcitation or 1s photoionization of Ne n clusters with ≈ 2800. These states relax further producing Ne+-Ne+-{{{N}}{{e}}}n-2 final states, and the RCT photon is emitted. Ab initio calculations assign the observed RCT signal to the{}{{{N}}{{e}}}2+(2{{{p}}}-2{[}1{{D}}]){--}{{{N}}{{e}}}n-1 initial state, while transitions from other possible initial states are proposed to be quenched by competing relaxation processes. The present results are in agreement with the commonly discussed scenario, where the doubly ionized atom in a noble gas cluster forms a dimer which dissipates its vibrational energy on a picosecond timescale. Our study complements the picture of the RCT process in weakly bound clusters, providing information which is inaccessible by charged particle detection techniques.

  2. Implementation of K-Means Clustering Method for Electronic Learning Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Latipa Sari, Herlina; Suranti Mrs., Dewi; Natalia Zulita, Leni

    2017-12-01

    Teaching and Learning process at SMK Negeri 2 Bengkulu Tengah has applied e-learning system for teachers and students. The e-learning was based on the classification of normative, productive, and adaptive subjects. SMK Negeri 2 Bengkulu Tengah consisted of 394 students and 60 teachers with 16 subjects. The record of e-learning database was used in this research to observe students’ activity pattern in attending class. K-Means algorithm in this research was used to classify students’ learning activities using e-learning, so that it was obtained cluster of students’ activity and improvement of student’s ability. Implementation of K-Means Clustering method for electronic learning model at SMK Negeri 2 Bengkulu Tengah was conducted by observing 10 students’ activities, namely participation of students in the classroom, submit assignment, view assignment, add discussion, view discussion, add comment, download course materials, view article, view test, and submit test. In the e-learning model, the testing was conducted toward 10 students that yielded 2 clusters of membership data (C1 and C2). Cluster 1: with membership percentage of 70% and it consisted of 6 members, namely 1112438 Anggi Julian, 1112439 Anis Maulita, 1112441 Ardi Febriansyah, 1112452 Berlian Sinurat, 1112460 Dewi Anugrah Anwar and 1112467 Eka Tri Oktavia Sari. Cluster 2:with membership percentage of 30% and it consisted of 4 members, namely 1112463 Dosita Afriyani, 1112471 Erda Novita, 1112474 Eskardi and 1112477 Fachrur Rozi.

  3. The Ursa Major Cluster of galaxies .1. Cluster definition and photometric data

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Tully, RB; Verheijen, MAW; Pierce, MJ; Wainscoat, RJ

    1996-01-01

    The Ursa Major Cluster has received remarkably little attention, although it is as near as the Virgo Cluster and contains a comparable number of H I-rich galaxies. In this paper, criteria for group membership are discussed and data are presented for 79 galaxies identified with the group. Of these,

  4. Argonne National Lab gets Linux network teraflop cluster

    CERN Multimedia

    2003-01-01

    "Linux NetworX, Salt Lake City, Utah, has delivered an Evolocity II (E2) Linux cluster to Argonne National Laboratory that is capable of performing more than one trillion calculations per second (1 teraFLOP). The cluster, named "Jazz" by Argonne, is designed to provide optimum performance for multiple disciplines such as chemistry, physics and reactor engineering and will be used by the entire scientific community at the Lab" (1 page).

  5. THE EVOLUTION OF ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI IN CLUSTERS OF GALAXIES TO REDSHIFT 1.3

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Martini, Paul; Sivakoff, Gregory R.; Mulchaey, John S.

    2009-01-01

    We have measured the luminous active galactic nucleus (AGN) population in a large sample of clusters of galaxies and find evidence for a substantial increase in the cluster AGN population from z ∼ 0.05 to z ∼ 1.3. The present sample now includes 32 clusters of galaxies, including 15 clusters above z = 0.4, which corresponds to a three-fold increase compared to our previous work at high redshift. At z R R (z) + 1 that host AGNs with rest-frame, hard X-ray [2-10 keV] luminosities L X,H ≥ 10 43 erg s -1 . The AGN fraction increases from f A = 0.134 +0.18 -0.087 % at a median z = 0.19 to f A = 1.00 +0.29 -0.23 % at a median z = 0.72. Our best estimate of the evolution is a factor of 8 increase to z = 1 and the statistical significance of the increase is 3.8σ. This dramatic evolution is qualitatively similar to the evolution of the star-forming galaxy population in clusters known as the Butcher-Oemler effect. We discuss the implications of this result for the coevolution of black holes and galaxies in clusters, the evolution of AGN feedback, searches for clusters with the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect, and the possible detection of environment-dependent downsizing.

  6. Clustering of microvascular complications in Type 1 diabetes mellitus

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bjerg, Lasse; Hulman, Adam; Charles, Morten

    2018-01-01

    AIMS: To describe to what extent microvascular complications exhibit clustering in persons with Type 1 diabetes, and to assess whether the presence of one complication modified the strength of the association between the other two. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the electronic...... medical records of 2276 persons with Type 1 diabetes treated in a specialized care hospital in Denmark in 2013. We used log-linear analysis to describe associations between diabetic kidney disease, neuropathy and retinopathy and logistic regression models to quantify the magnitude of associations...... adjusting for potential confounders. RESULTS: The median duration of diabetes was 24 years and median HbA1c was 63 mmol/mol (7.9%). We found strong indication of clustering and found no evidence that presence of one complication modified the association between the other two. In models adjusted for diabetes...

  7. SUPERDENSE MASSIVE GALAXIES IN WINGS LOCAL CLUSTERS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Valentinuzzi, T.; D'Onofrio, M.; Fritz, J.; Poggianti, B. M.; Bettoni, D.; Fasano, G.; Moretti, A.; Omizzolo, A.; Varela, J.; Cava, A.; Couch, W. J.; Dressler, A.; Moles, M.; Kjaergaard, P.; Vanzella, E.

    2010-01-01

    Massive quiescent galaxies at z > 1 have been found to have small physical sizes, and hence to be superdense. Several mechanisms, including minor mergers, have been proposed for increasing galaxy sizes from high- to low-z. We search for superdense massive galaxies in the WIde-field Nearby Galaxy-cluster Survey (WINGS) of X-ray selected galaxy clusters at 0.04 10 M sun , are mostly S0 galaxies, have a median effective radius (R e ) = 1.61 ± 0.29 kpc, a median Sersic index (n) = 3.0 ± 0.6, and very old stellar populations with a median mass-weighted age of 12.1 ± 1.3 Gyr. We calculate a number density of 2.9 x 10 -2 Mpc -3 for superdense galaxies in local clusters, and a hard lower limit of 1.3 x 10 -5 Mpc -3 in the whole comoving volume between z = 0.04 and z = 0.07. We find a relation between mass, effective radius, and luminosity-weighted age in our cluster galaxies, which can mimic the claimed evolution of the radius with redshift, if not properly taken into account. We compare our data with spectroscopic high-z surveys and find that-when stellar masses are considered-there is consistency with the local WINGS galaxy sizes out to z ∼ 2, while a discrepancy of a factor of 3 exists with the only spectroscopic z > 2 study. In contrast, there is strong evidence for a large evolution in radius for the most massive galaxies with M * > 4 x 10 11 M sun compared to similarly massive galaxies in WINGS, i.e., the brightest cluster galaxies.

  8. Equilibrium geometries, electronic and magnetic properties of small AunNi- (n = 1-9) clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Cui-Ming; Chen, Xiao-Xu; Yang, Xiang-Dong

    2014-05-01

    Geometrical, electronic and magnetic properties of small AunNi- (n = 1-9) clusters have been investigated based on density functional theory (DFT) at PW91P86 level. An extensive structural search shows that the relative stable structures of AunNi- (n = 1-9) clusters adopt 2D structure for n = 1-5, 7 and 3D structure for n = 6, 8-9. And the substitution of a Ni atom for an Au atom in the Au-n+1 cluster obviously changes the structure of the host cluster. Moreover, an odd-even alternation phenomenon has been found for HOMO-LUMO energy gaps, indicating that the relative stable structures of the AunNi- clusters with odd-numbered gold atoms have a higher relative stability. Finally, the natural population analysis (NPA) and the vertical detachment energies (VDE) are studied, respectively. The theoretical values of VDE are reported for the first time to our best knowledge.

  9. Star clusters and associations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ruprecht, J.; Palous, J.

    1983-01-01

    All 33 papers presented at the symposium were inputted to INIS. They dealt with open clusters, globular clusters, stellar associations and moving groups, and local kinematics and galactic structures. (E.S.)

  10. [Blunt trauma with bullet-proof vests. Skin lesions are no reliable predictor of injury severity].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doll, D; Illert, B; Bohrer, S; Richter, C; Woelfl, C

    2009-04-01

    It is well known that so-called bullet-proof vests offer protection against a wide range of penetrating trauma, but their protection against blunt trauma is less well understood. Fast projectiles may result in hematomas and contusions behind the armour. We report a traffic accident involving a young soldier wearing a ballistic protection vest resulting in a right thoracoabdominal blunt trauma leading to a confined liver compression rupture. As nearly no skin marks were detectable, we point out that every emergency department surgeon should be very suspicious if a patient wore a ballistic vest at the time of the accident--there may be no skin marks despite severe intra-abdominal trauma. Our patient recovered following hypotensive ICU treatment, thrombocyte mobilization, and factor VIIa substitution.

  11. Genetic analysis of the pelA-pelE cluster encoding the acidic and basic pectate lyases in Erwinia chrysanthemi EC16.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barras, F; Chatterjee, A K

    1987-10-01

    In Erwinia chrysanthemi (EC16) the clustered pelA and pelE genes encode an acidic (pI 4.2) and a basic (pI 10.0) pectate lyase (Pel), respectively. The pelA gene has been isolated on a 1.2 kb restriction fragment and the direction of transcription determined. DNA hybridization analysis showed that the pelE sequence shares DNA homology with pelA but not with pelB or pelC, two genes encoding other Pel species in EC16. Since Pel A and Pel E enzymes showed little similarity in terms of catalytic properties, it is proposed that pelA and pelE are duplicates which have highly diverged.

  12. OLYMPUS: an automated hybrid clustering method in time series gene expression. Case study: host response after Influenza A (H1N1) infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dimitrakopoulou, Konstantina; Vrahatis, Aristidis G; Wilk, Esther; Tsakalidis, Athanasios K; Bezerianos, Anastasios

    2013-09-01

    The increasing flow of short time series microarray experiments for the study of dynamic cellular processes poses the need for efficient clustering tools. These tools must deal with three primary issues: first, to consider the multi-functionality of genes; second, to evaluate the similarity of the relative change of amplitude in the time domain rather than the absolute values; third, to cope with the constraints of conventional clustering algorithms such as the assignment of the appropriate cluster number. To address these, we propose OLYMPUS, a novel unsupervised clustering algorithm that integrates Differential Evolution (DE) method into Fuzzy Short Time Series (FSTS) algorithm with the scope to utilize efficiently the information of population of the first and enhance the performance of the latter. Our hybrid approach provides sets of genes that enable the deciphering of distinct phases in dynamic cellular processes. We proved the efficiency of OLYMPUS on synthetic as well as on experimental data. The discriminative power of OLYMPUS provided clusters, which refined the so far perspective of the dynamics of host response mechanisms to Influenza A (H1N1). Our kinetic model sets a timeline for several pathways and cell populations, implicated to participate in host response; yet no timeline was assigned to them (e.g. cell cycle, homeostasis). Regarding the activity of B cells, our approach revealed that some antibody-related mechanisms remain activated until day 60 post infection. The Matlab codes for implementing OLYMPUS, as well as example datasets, are freely accessible via the Web (http://biosignal.med.upatras.gr/wordpress/biosignal/). Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. The new mixed cluster trielide K{sub 3}Ga{sub 11-x}In{sub x} (x = 1.16-1.36). Synthesis, crystal chemistry, and chemical bonding

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Falk, Martha; Meyer, Carolin; Roehr, Caroline [Institut fuer Anorganische und Analytische Chemie, Universitaet Freiburg (Germany)

    2017-12-13

    The new cluster compound K{sub 3}Ga{sub 11-x}In{sub x}, which exhibits a very small In/Ga phase width of x = 1.16 to 1.36 only, was obtained in the course of a systematic synthetic, crystallographic and bond theoretical investigation of mixed potassium trielides of the ternary system K-In-Ga. The compound, which was synthesized from nearly stoichiometric amounts of the elements at a maximum temperature of 500 C, crystallizes in a new orthorhombic crystal structure type [space group Cmmm, a = 1577.9(5), b = 3355.1(8), c = 655.2(2) pm, Z = 10, R{sub 1} = 0.0471]. In the complex polyanion, the triels form two crystallographically different [Ga{sub 12}] icosahedra, which are present in a 1:2 ratio, and a previously unknown [M{sub 13}] ''double-cluster'' consisting of two vertex-sharing [M{sub 7}] pentagonal bipyramids. All clusters are connected among each other and via a four-bonded pure In and Ga atom [In(1), Ga(1)]. The polyanion of the compound with the overall formula K{sub 15}M{sub 55} can thus be split up according to [Ga(1X){sub 12}][Ga(2X){sub 12}]{sub 2}[M(3X){sub 13}]In(1){sub 4}Ga(1){sub 2}. Herein, the all-exo bonded closo icosahedra carry a charge of -2, the six four-bonded In/Ga contribute with a charge of -6 and the new [M{sub 13}] ''double-cluster'' thus carries a charge of -3. Under the reasonable assumption of an ''intermediate'' interaction between the two cluster fragments, this charge, i.e. the presence of 15 skeleton electron pairs, is in accordance with the mno electron counting rules. FP-LAPW DFT band structure calculations of two ordered model compounds support this interpretation: The tDOS exhibits a small bandgap and the electron density map suggests a limited additional interaction between the Ga{sub 5} bases of the two bipyramidal cluster fragments. (copyright 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

  14. The Connection between Radio Halos and Cluster Mergers and the ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    (2008) suggested that the behavior of clusters in the. P1.4 − LX diagram is connected with their dynamical state. 2.2 The dynamical state of GMRT clusters ..... (e.g., Cassano et al. 2008) and were used to derive expectations for the planned. LOFAR surveys. Accordingly to these predictions the Tier 1 'Large Area Survey' at.

  15. Hybrid treatment of bullet embolism at the abdominal aortic bifurcation, complicated with thoracoabdominal aorta pseudoaneurysm and common iliac artery occlusion: case report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patrick Bastos Metzger

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Embolization due to a firearm projectile entering the bloodstream is a rare event that is unlikely to be suspected during initial treatment of trauma patients. We describe and discuss a case of bullet embolism of the abdominal aortic bifurcation, complicated by a pseudoaneurysm of the thoracoabdominal aorta and occlusion of the right common iliac artery, but successfully treated using a combination of endovascular methods and conventional surgery.

  16. The old open cluster Melotte 66

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hawarden, T.G.

    1976-01-01

    Photoelectric and photographic photometry of the open cluster Melotte 66 is presented. The colour-magnitude (CM) diagram shows most of the characteristics of an old cluster. The giant branch is broad with its blue edge populated preferentially by stars from the outer parts of the cluster. There is no detectable horizontal subgiant sequence. The main sequence turn-off colour, two-colour diagram and the colour difference between the turn-off and the subgiants are used to estimate the age and composition. Melotte 66 appears to have reddening E(B-V) = 0sup(m).17 and ultraviolet excess delta(U-B) approximately 0sup(m).1. The cluster is probably between 6 and 7 x 10 9 yr old. A distance modulus (m-M) 0 =12sup(m).4 is derived, which implies that the cluster lies about 750 pc from the galactic plane. (author)

  17. Rubella epidemic caused by genotype 1E rubella viruses in Beijing, China, in 2007-2011.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Meng; Zhu, Zhen; Liu, Donglei; Huang, Guohong; Huang, Fang; Wu, Jiang; Zhang, Tiegang; Xu, Wenbo; Pang, Xinghuo

    2013-04-18

    A series of different rubella vaccination strategies were implemented to control rubella and prevent congenital rubella virus infection in Beijing, China. The rubella vaccine was available in 1995 in Beijing, and was introduced into the Beijing immunization program (vaccine recipients at their own expense vaccination) in 2000, and was introduced into the National Expanded Program on Immunization (vaccine recipients free vaccination) in 2006. Rubella virological surveillance started in Beijing in 2007. The reported rubella incidence rate has decreased dramatically due to the introduction of the vaccine in Beijing since 1995. However, rubella epidemics occurred regardless in 2001 and 2007. The incidence rate among the floating population has gradually increased since 2002, reaching 2 or more times that in the permanent resident population. The peak age of rubella cases gradually changed from tree was constructed based on the World Health Organization standard sequence window for rubella virus isolates. All Beijing rubella virus isolates belong to genotype 1E/cluster1 and were clustered interspersed with viruses from other provinces in China. The effective number of infections indicated by a Bayesian skyline plot remained constant from 2007 to 2011. The proportion of rubella cases among the floating population has increased significantly in Beijing since 2002, and the disease burden gradually shifted to the older age group (15- to 39-year olds), which has become a major group with rubella infection since 2006. Genotype 1E rubella virus continuously caused a rubella epidemic in Beijing in 2007-2011 and was the predominant virus, and all Beijing genotype 1E viruses belong to cluster 1, which is also widely circulated throughout the country.

  18. APPECT: An Approximate Backbone-Based Clustering Algorithm for Tags

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zong, Yu; Xu, Guandong; Jin, Pin

    2011-01-01

    algorithm for Tags (APPECT). The main steps of APPECT are: (1) we execute the K-means algorithm on a tag similarity matrix for M times and collect a set of tag clustering results Z={C1,C2,…,Cm}; (2) we form the approximate backbone of Z by executing a greedy search; (3) we fix the approximate backbone...... as the initial tag clustering result and then assign the rest tags into the corresponding clusters based on the similarity. Experimental results on three real world datasets namely MedWorm, MovieLens and Dmoz demonstrate the effectiveness and the superiority of the proposed method against the traditional...... Agglomerative Clustering on tagging data, which possess the inherent drawbacks, such as the sensitivity of initialization. In this paper, we instead make use of the approximate backbone of tag clustering results to find out better tag clusters. In particular, we propose an APProximate backbonE-based Clustering...

  19. Cluster dynamics at different cluster size and incident laser wavelengths

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Desai, Tara; Bernardinello, Andrea

    2002-01-01

    X-ray emission spectra from aluminum clusters of diameter -0.4 μm and gold clusters of dia. ∼1.25 μm are experimentally studied by irradiating the cluster foil targets with 1.06 μm laser, 10 ns (FWHM) at an intensity ∼10 12 W/cm 2 . Aluminum clusters show a different spectra compared to bulk material whereas gold cluster evolve towards bulk gold. Experimental data are analyzed on the basis of cluster dimension, laser wavelength and pulse duration. PIC simulations are performed to study the behavior of clusters at higher intensity I≥10 17 W/cm 2 for different size of the clusters irradiated at different laser wavelengths. Results indicate the dependence of cluster dynamics on cluster size and incident laser wavelength

  20. GENETIC IDENTIFICATION FOR TUNA AND RAINBOW RUNNER CAPTURE IN NORTH BALI WATERS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gusti Ngurah Permana

    2006-06-01

    Full Text Available Gondol Research Institute for Mariculture identification of tuna and rainbow runner was an objective in this current study. Samples of five species were collected from territorial water of North Bali. The method used in this study was allozyme electrophoresis. The results showed that buffer of CAPM-6 (citric acid aminoprophylmorpholine resulted in a sharp and clear banding pattern. The species could be differentiated in six diagnostic isozyme patterns Idh* (isocitrate dehydrogenase, 6Pgd* (6 phosphogluconate dehydrogenase, Gpi* (glucose phosphate isomerase, Mdh* (malate dehydrogenase, Est* (esterase, and Sp* (sarcoplasmic protein. All species were in Hardy-weinberg equilibrium. Heterozygosities of species were ranged from 0.00 to 0.099. Yellowfin tuna has the highest heterozigosity compared with the other species. Clustering samples according to pairs revealed that genetic distance of Bullet tuna (A. rochei and Eastern little tuna (E. affinis had small value (0.001. By contrast, the largest value was observed between yellowfin tuna, T. albacares and rainbow runner, E. bipunnulata (0.007. This value indicated that Bullet tuna (A. rochei and Eastern little tuna (E. affinis closed relation, while among yellowfin tuna, skipjack tuna, and rainbow runner, were separated phylogenically.

  1. Further Wolf-Rayet stars in the starburst cluster Westerlund 1

    OpenAIRE

    Negueruela, I.; Clark, J. S.

    2005-01-01

    We present new low and intermediate-resolution spectroscopic observations of the Wolf Rayet (WR) star population in the massive starburst cluster Westerlund 1. Finding charts are presented for five new WRs - four WNL and one WCL - raising the current total of known WRs in the cluster to 19. We also present new spectra and correct identifications for the majority of the 14 WR stars previously known, notably confirming the presence of two WNVL stars. Finally we briefly discuss the massive star ...

  2. HIV infection and hepatitis C virus genotype 1a are associated with phylogenetic clustering among people with recently acquired hepatitis C virus infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bartlett, Sofia R; Jacka, Brendan; Bull, Rowena A; Luciani, Fabio; Matthews, Gail V; Lamoury, Francois M J; Hellard, Margaret E; Hajarizadeh, Behzad; Teutsch, Suzy; White, Bethany; Maher, Lisa; Dore, Gregory J; Lloyd, Andrew R; Grebely, Jason; Applegate, Tanya L

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with phylogenetic clustering among people with recently acquired hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Participants with available sample at time of HCV detection were selected from three studies; the Australian Trial in Acute Hepatitis C, the Hepatitis C Incidence and Transmission Study - Prison and Community. HCV RNA was extracted and Core to E2 region of HCV sequenced. Clusters were identified from maximum likelihood trees with 1000 bootstrap replicates using 90% bootstrap and 5% genetic distance threshold. Among 225 participants with available Core-E2 sequence (ATAHC, n=113; HITS-p, n=90; and HITS-c, n=22), HCV genotype prevalence was: G1a: 38% (n=86), G1b: 5% (n=12), G2a: 1% (n=2), G2b: 5% (n=11), G3a: 48% (n=109), G6a: 1% (n=2) and G6l 1% (n=3). Of participants included in phylogenetic trees, 22% of participants were in a pair/cluster (G1a-35%, 30/85, mean maximum genetic distance=0.031; G3a-11%, 12/106, mean maximum genetic distance=0.021; other genotypes-21%, 6/28, mean maximum genetic distance=0.023). Among HCV/HIV co-infected participants, 50% (18/36) were in a pair/cluster, compared to 16% (30/183) with HCV mono-infection (P=infection [vs. HCV mono-infection; adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 4.24; 95%CI 1.91, 9.39], and HCV G1a infection (vs. other HCV genotypes; AOR 3.33, 95%CI 0.14, 0.61).HCV treatment and prevention strategies, including enhanced antiviral therapy, should be optimised. The impact of targeting of HCV treatment as prevention to populations with higher phylogenetic clustering, such as those with HIV co-infection, could be explored through mathematical modelling. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Phenotypes of asthma in low-income children and adolescents: cluster analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cabral, Anna Lucia Barros; Sousa, Andrey Wirgues; Mendes, Felipe Augusto Rodrigues; Carvalho, Celso Ricardo Fernandes de

    2017-01-01

    Studies characterizing asthma phenotypes have predominantly included adults or have involved children and adolescents in developed countries. Therefore, their applicability in other populations, such as those of developing countries, remains indeterminate. Our objective was to determine how low-income children and adolescents with asthma in Brazil are distributed across a cluster analysis. We included 306 children and adolescents (6-18 years of age) with a clinical diagnosis of asthma and under medical treatment for at least one year of follow-up. At enrollment, all the patients were clinically stable. For the cluster analysis, we selected 20 variables commonly measured in clinical practice and considered important in defining asthma phenotypes. Variables with high multicollinearity were excluded. A cluster analysis was applied using a twostep agglomerative test and log-likelihood distance measure. Three clusters were defined for our population. Cluster 1 (n = 94) included subjects with normal pulmonary function, mild eosinophil inflammation, few exacerbations, later age at asthma onset, and mild atopy. Cluster 2 (n = 87) included those with normal pulmonary function, a moderate number of exacerbations, early age at asthma onset, more severe eosinophil inflammation, and moderate atopy. Cluster 3 (n = 108) included those with poor pulmonary function, frequent exacerbations, severe eosinophil inflammation, and severe atopy. Asthma was characterized by the presence of atopy, number of exacerbations, and lung function in low-income children and adolescents in Brazil. The many similarities with previous cluster analyses of phenotypes indicate that this approach shows good generalizability. Estudos que caracterizam fenótipos de asma predominantemente incluem adultos ou foram realizados em crianças e adolescentes de países desenvolvidos; portanto, sua aplicabilidade em outras populações, tais como as de países em desenvolvimento, permanece indeterminada. Nosso

  4. Cluster Ions and Atmospheric Processes

    Science.gov (United States)

    D'Auria, R.; Turco, R. P.

    We investigate the properties and possible roles of naturally occurring ions under at- mospheric conditions. Among other things, the formation of stable charged molecular clusters represents the initial stages of aerosol nucleation [e.g., Keesee and Castle- man, 1982], while the conversion of vapor to aggregates is the first step in certain atmospheric phase transitions [e.g. Hamill and Turco, 2000]. We analyze the stability and size distributions of common ionic clusters by solving the differential equations describing their growth and loss. The necessary reaction rate coefficients are deter- mined using kinetic and thermodynamic data. The latter are derived from direct labo- ratory measurements of equilibrium constants, from the classical charged liquid drop model applied to large aggregates (i.e., the Thomson model [Thomson, 1906]), and from quantum mechanical calculations of the thermodynamic potentials associated with the cluster structures. This approach allows us to characterize molecular clusters across the entire size range from true molecular species to larger aggregates exhibiting macroscopic behavior [D'Auria, 2001]. Cluster systems discussed in this talk include the proton hydrates (PHs) and nitrate-water and nitrate-nitric acid series [D'Auria and Turco, 2001]. These ions have frequently been detected in the stratosphere and tropo- sphere [e.g., Arnold et al., 1977; Viggiano and Arnold, 1981]. We show how the pro- posed hybrid cluster model can be extended to a wide range of ion systems, including non-proton hydrates (NPHs), mixed-ligand clusters such as nitrate-water-nitric acid and sulfate-sulfuric acid-water, as well as more exotic species containing ammonia, pyridine and other organic compounds found on ions [e.g., Eisele, 1988; Tanner and Eisele, 1991]. References: Arnold, F., D. Krankowsky and K. H. Marien, First mass spectrometric measurements of posi- tive ions in the stratosphere, Nature, 267, 30-32, 1977. D'Auria, R., A study of ionic

  5. Cluster dynamics transcending chemical dynamics toward nuclear fusion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heidenreich, Andreas; Jortner, Joshua; Last, Isidore

    2006-07-11

    Ultrafast cluster dynamics encompasses femtosecond nuclear dynamics, attosecond electron dynamics, and electron-nuclear dynamics in ultraintense laser fields (peak intensities 10(15)-10(20) W.cm(-2)). Extreme cluster multielectron ionization produces highly charged cluster ions, e.g., (C(4+)(D(+))(4))(n) and (D(+)I(22+))(n) at I(M) = 10(18) W.cm(-2), that undergo Coulomb explosion (CE) with the production of high-energy (5 keV to 1 MeV) ions, which can trigger nuclear reactions in an assembly of exploding clusters. The laser intensity and the cluster size dependence of the dynamics and energetics of CE of (D(2))(n), (HT)(n), (CD(4))(n), (DI)(n), (CD(3)I)(n), and (CH(3)I)(n) clusters were explored by electrostatic models and molecular dynamics simulations, quantifying energetic driving effects, and kinematic run-over effects. The optimization of table-top dd nuclear fusion driven by CE of deuterium containing heteroclusters is realized for light-heavy heteroclusters of the largest size, which allows for the prevalence of cluster vertical ionization at the highest intensity of the laser field. We demonstrate a 7-orders-of-magnitude enhancement of the yield of dd nuclear fusion driven by CE of light-heavy heteroclusters as compared with (D(2))(n) clusters of the same size. Prospective applications for the attainment of table-top nucleosynthesis reactions, e.g., (12)C(P,gamma)(13)N driven by CE of (CH(3)I)(n) clusters, were explored.

  6. Rearrangement of RAG-1 recombinase gene in radiation-sensitive ''wasted'' mice

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Woloschak, G.E.; Weaver, P.

    1994-01-01

    The recent cloning and characterization of recombinase genes (RAG- 1/RAG-2) expressed in lymphoid and possibly central nervous system tissues prompted us to examine expression of these genes in DNA repair-deficient/immunodeficient wasted mice (wst). Our results revealed expression of RAG-1 mRNA was detected in spinal cord or brain from wst/wst mice or their normal littermates (wst/sm-bullet mice). In thymus tissue, a small RAG-1 transcript was detected in wst/wst mice that was not evident in thymus from control mice. In wst/lg-bullet mice, a two-fold increase in RAG-1 mRNA was evident in thymus tissue. RAG-2 mRNA could only be detected in thymus tissue from wst/sm-bullet and not from wst;/wst or parental control BCF 1 mice. Southern blots revealed a rearrangement/deletion within the RAG-1 gene of affected wasted mice, not evident in known strain-specific parental or littermate controls. These results support the idea that the RAG-1 gene may map at or near the locus for the wasted mutation. In addition, they suggest the importance of recombinase function in normal immune and central nervous system development as well as the potential contribution of this gene family to the normal repair of radiation-induced DNA damage

  7. Synthesis and Characterization of Rh-Co Butterfly Clusters Capped by Functionally Substituted 1-Alkynes

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    朱保华; 胡斌; 张伟强; 边治国; 赵全义; 殷元骐; 孙杰

    2003-01-01

    By the reactions of [Rh2Co2(CO)12] 1 with functionally substituted alkyne ligands HC≡CR 2 (R = FeCp2) and 3 (R = 2-OH-C6H4COOCH2), respectively in n-hexane at room temperature, two new cluster derivatives [Rh2Co2(CO)6(μ-CO)4(μ4, η2-HC≡CR)] 4 (R = FeCp2) and 5 (R = 2-OH-C6H4COOCH2) were obtained respectively. The alkyne was inserted into the Co-Co bond of cluster 1 to give two butterfly clusters. Cluster 4 has been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Crystallographic data: C22H10Co2FeO10Rh2, Mr = 813.83, orthorhombic, space group P212121, a = 11.5318(7), b = 12.6572(7), c = 17.018(1) A。, V = 2483.9(3) A。3, Z = 4, Dc = 2.176 g/cm3, F(000) = 1568, μ = 3.233 mm-1, the final R = 0.0366 and wR = 0.0899 for 5367 observed reflections with I > 2σ(I). The two clusters have also been characterized by elemental analysis, IR and 1H-NMR spectroscopy.

  8. Developing cluster strategy of apples dodol SMEs by integration K-means clustering and analytical hierarchy process method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mustaniroh, S. A.; Effendi, U.; Silalahi, R. L. R.; Sari, T.; Ala, M.

    2018-03-01

    The purposes of this research were to determine the grouping of apples dodol small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Batu City and to determine an appropriate development strategy for each cluster. The methods used for clustering SMEs was k-means. The Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) approach was then applied to determine the development strategy priority for each cluster. The variables used in grouping include production capacity per month, length of operation, investment value, average sales revenue per month, amount of SMEs assets, and the number of workers. Several factors were considered in AHP include industry cluster, government, as well as related and supporting industries. Data was collected using the methods of questionaire and interviews. SMEs respondents were selected among SMEs appels dodol in Batu City using purposive sampling. The result showed that two clusters were formed from five apples dodol SMEs. The 1stcluster of apples dodol SMEs, classified as small enterprises, included SME A, SME C, and SME D. The 2ndcluster of SMEs apples dodol, classified as medium enterprises, consisted of SME B and SME E. The AHP results indicated that the priority development strategy for the 1stcluster of apples dodol SMEs was improving quality and the product standardisation, while for the 2nd cluster was increasing the marketing access.

  9. The galaxy cluster mid-infrared luminosity function at 1.3 < z < 3.2

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wylezalek, Dominika; Vernet, Joël; De Breuck, Carlos [European Southern Observatory, Karl-Schwarzschildstr.2, D-85748 Garching bei München (Germany); Stern, Daniel [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States); Brodwin, Mark [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Missouri, 5110 Rockhill Road, Kansas City, MO 64110 (United States); Galametz, Audrey [INAF-Osservatorio di Roma, Via Frascati 33, I-00040, Monteporzio (Italy); Gonzalez, Anthony H. [Department of Astronomy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States); Jarvis, Matt [Astrophysics, Department of Physics, Keble Road, Oxford OX1 3RH (United Kingdom); Hatch, Nina [School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD (United Kingdom); Seymour, Nick [CASS, P.O. Box 76, Epping, NSW, 1710 (Australia); Stanford, Spencer A. [Physics Department, University of California, Davis, CA 95616 (United States)

    2014-05-01

    We present 4.5 μm luminosity functions for galaxies identified in 178 candidate galaxy clusters at 1.3 < z < 3.2. The clusters were identified as Spitzer/Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) color-selected overdensities in the Clusters Around Radio-Loud AGN project, which imaged 420 powerful radio-loud active galactic nuclei (RLAGNs) at z > 1.3. The luminosity functions are derived for different redshift and richness bins, and the IRAC imaging reaches depths of m* + 2, allowing us to measure the faint end slopes of the luminosity functions. We find that α = –1 describes the luminosity function very well in all redshift bins and does not evolve significantly. This provides evidence that the rate at which the low mass galaxy population grows through star formation gets quenched and is replenished by in-falling field galaxies does not have a major net effect on the shape of the luminosity function. Our measurements for m* are consistent with passive evolution models and high formation redshifts (z{sub f} ∼ 3). We find a slight trend toward fainter m* for the richest clusters, implying that the most massive clusters in our sample could contain older stellar populations, yet another example of cosmic downsizing. Modeling shows that a contribution of a star-forming population of up to 40% cannot be ruled out. This value, found from our targeted survey, is significantly lower than the values found for slightly lower redshift, z ∼ 1, clusters found in wide-field surveys. The results are consistent with cosmic downsizing, as the clusters studied here were all found in the vicinity of RLAGNs—which have proven to be preferentially located in massive dark matter halos in the richest environments at high redshift—and they may therefore be older and more evolved systems than the general protocluster population.

  10. The galaxy cluster mid-infrared luminosity function at 1.3 < z < 3.2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wylezalek, Dominika; Vernet, Joël; De Breuck, Carlos; Stern, Daniel; Brodwin, Mark; Galametz, Audrey; Gonzalez, Anthony H.; Jarvis, Matt; Hatch, Nina; Seymour, Nick; Stanford, Spencer A.

    2014-01-01

    We present 4.5 μm luminosity functions for galaxies identified in 178 candidate galaxy clusters at 1.3 < z < 3.2. The clusters were identified as Spitzer/Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) color-selected overdensities in the Clusters Around Radio-Loud AGN project, which imaged 420 powerful radio-loud active galactic nuclei (RLAGNs) at z > 1.3. The luminosity functions are derived for different redshift and richness bins, and the IRAC imaging reaches depths of m* + 2, allowing us to measure the faint end slopes of the luminosity functions. We find that α = –1 describes the luminosity function very well in all redshift bins and does not evolve significantly. This provides evidence that the rate at which the low mass galaxy population grows through star formation gets quenched and is replenished by in-falling field galaxies does not have a major net effect on the shape of the luminosity function. Our measurements for m* are consistent with passive evolution models and high formation redshifts (z f ∼ 3). We find a slight trend toward fainter m* for the richest clusters, implying that the most massive clusters in our sample could contain older stellar populations, yet another example of cosmic downsizing. Modeling shows that a contribution of a star-forming population of up to 40% cannot be ruled out. This value, found from our targeted survey, is significantly lower than the values found for slightly lower redshift, z ∼ 1, clusters found in wide-field surveys. The results are consistent with cosmic downsizing, as the clusters studied here were all found in the vicinity of RLAGNs—which have proven to be preferentially located in massive dark matter halos in the richest environments at high redshift—and they may therefore be older and more evolved systems than the general protocluster population.

  11. Galaxy Evolution in Clusters Since z ~ 1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aragón-Salamanca, A.

    Galaxy clusters provide some of the most extreme environments in which galaxies evolve, making them excellent laboratories to study the age old question of "nature" vs. "nurture" in galaxy evolution. Here I review some of the key observational results obtained during the last decade on the evolution of the morphology, structure, dynamics, star-formation history and stellar populations of cluster galaxies since the time when the Universe was half its present age. Many of the results presented here have been obtained within the ESO Distant Cluster Survey (EDisCS) and Space Telescope A901/02 Galaxy Evolution Survey (STAGES) collaborations.

  12. PRIMUS: Galaxy clustering as a function of luminosity and color at 0.2 < z < 1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Skibba, Ramin A.; Smith, M. Stephen M.; Coil, Alison L.; Mendez, Alexander J. [Department of Physics, Center for Astrophysics and Space Sciences, University of California, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, San Diego, CA 92093 (United States); Moustakas, John [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Siena College, 515 Loudon Road, Loudonville, NY 12211 (United States); Aird, James [Department of Physics, Durham University, Durham DH1 3LE (United Kingdom); Blanton, Michael R. [Center for Cosmology and Particle Physics, Department of Physics, New York University, 4 Washington Place, New York, NY 10003 (United States); Bray, Aaron D.; Eisenstein, Daniel J. [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Cool, Richard J. [MMT Observatory, 1540 E Second Street, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Wong, Kenneth C. [Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona, 933 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Zhu, Guangtun, E-mail: rskibba@ucsd.edu [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States)

    2014-04-01

    We present measurements of the luminosity and color-dependence of galaxy clustering at 0.2 < z < 1.0 in the Prism Multi-object Survey. We quantify the clustering with the redshift-space and projected two-point correlation functions, ξ(r{sub p} , π) and w{sub p} (r{sub p} ), using volume-limited samples constructed from a parent sample of over ∼130, 000 galaxies with robust redshifts in seven independent fields covering 9 deg{sup 2} of sky. We quantify how the scale-dependent clustering amplitude increases with increasing luminosity and redder color, with relatively small errors over large volumes. We find that red galaxies have stronger small-scale (0.1 Mpc h {sup –1} < r{sub p} < 1 Mpc h {sup –1}) clustering and steeper correlation functions compared to blue galaxies, as well as a strong color dependent clustering within the red sequence alone. We interpret our measured clustering trends in terms of galaxy bias and obtain values of b {sub gal} ≈ 0.9-2.5, quantifying how galaxies are biased tracers of dark matter depending on their luminosity and color. We also interpret the color dependence with mock catalogs, and find that the clustering of blue galaxies is nearly constant with color, while redder galaxies have stronger clustering in the one-halo term due to a higher satellite galaxy fraction. In addition, we measure the evolution of the clustering strength and bias, and we do not detect statistically significant departures from passive evolution. We argue that the luminosity- and color-environment (or halo mass) relations of galaxies have not significantly evolved since z ∼ 1. Finally, using jackknife subsampling methods, we find that sampling fluctuations are important and that the COSMOS field is generally an outlier, due to having more overdense structures than other fields; we find that 'cosmic variance' can be a significant source of uncertainty for high-redshift clustering measurements.

  13. A point mutation in the [2Fe–2S] cluster binding region of the NAF-1 protein (H114C) dramatically hinders the cluster donor properties

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tamir, Sagi; Eisenberg-Domovich, Yael [The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus at Givat Ram, Jerusalem 91904 (Israel); Conlan, Andrea R.; Stofleth, Jason T.; Lipper, Colin H.; Paddock, Mark L. [University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093 (United States); Mittler, Ron [University of North Texas, Denton, TX 76203 (United States); Jennings, Patricia A. [University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093 (United States); Livnah, Oded, E-mail: oded.livnah@huji.ac.il; Nechushtai, Rachel, E-mail: oded.livnah@huji.ac.il [The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus at Givat Ram, Jerusalem 91904 (Israel)

    2014-06-01

    NAF-1 has been shown to be related with human health and disease, is upregulated in epithelial breast cancer and suppression of its expression significantly suppresses tumor growth. It is shown that replacement of the single His ligand with Cys resulted in dramatic changes to the properties of its 2Fe-2S clusters without any global crystal structural changes. NAF-1 is an important [2Fe–2S] NEET protein associated with human health and disease. A mis-splicing mutation in NAF-1 results in Wolfram Syndrome type 2, a lethal childhood disease. Upregulation of NAF-1 is found in epithelial breast cancer cells, and suppression of NAF-1 expression by knockdown significantly suppresses tumor growth. Key to NAF-1 function is the NEET fold with its [2Fe–2S] cluster. In this work, the high-resolution structure of native NAF-1 was determined to 1.65 Å resolution (R factor = 13.5%) together with that of a mutant in which the single His ligand of its [2Fe–2S] cluster, His114, was replaced by Cys. The NAF-1 H114C mutant structure was determined to 1.58 Å resolution (R factor = 16.0%). All structural differences were localized to the cluster binding site. Compared with native NAF-1, the [2Fe–2S] clusters of the H114C mutant were found to (i) be 25-fold more stable, (ii) have a redox potential that is 300 mV more negative and (iii) have their cluster donation/transfer function abolished. Because no global structural differences were found between the mutant and the native (wild-type) NAF-1 proteins, yet significant functional differences exist between them, the NAF-1 H114C mutant is an excellent tool to decipher the underlying biological importance of the [2Fe–2S] cluster of NAF-1 in vivo.

  14. A point mutation in the [2Fe–2S] cluster binding region of the NAF-1 protein (H114C) dramatically hinders the cluster donor properties

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tamir, Sagi; Eisenberg-Domovich, Yael; Conlan, Andrea R.; Stofleth, Jason T.; Lipper, Colin H.; Paddock, Mark L.; Mittler, Ron; Jennings, Patricia A.; Livnah, Oded; Nechushtai, Rachel

    2014-01-01

    NAF-1 has been shown to be related with human health and disease, is upregulated in epithelial breast cancer and suppression of its expression significantly suppresses tumor growth. It is shown that replacement of the single His ligand with Cys resulted in dramatic changes to the properties of its 2Fe-2S clusters without any global crystal structural changes. NAF-1 is an important [2Fe–2S] NEET protein associated with human health and disease. A mis-splicing mutation in NAF-1 results in Wolfram Syndrome type 2, a lethal childhood disease. Upregulation of NAF-1 is found in epithelial breast cancer cells, and suppression of NAF-1 expression by knockdown significantly suppresses tumor growth. Key to NAF-1 function is the NEET fold with its [2Fe–2S] cluster. In this work, the high-resolution structure of native NAF-1 was determined to 1.65 Å resolution (R factor = 13.5%) together with that of a mutant in which the single His ligand of its [2Fe–2S] cluster, His114, was replaced by Cys. The NAF-1 H114C mutant structure was determined to 1.58 Å resolution (R factor = 16.0%). All structural differences were localized to the cluster binding site. Compared with native NAF-1, the [2Fe–2S] clusters of the H114C mutant were found to (i) be 25-fold more stable, (ii) have a redox potential that is 300 mV more negative and (iii) have their cluster donation/transfer function abolished. Because no global structural differences were found between the mutant and the native (wild-type) NAF-1 proteins, yet significant functional differences exist between them, the NAF-1 H114C mutant is an excellent tool to decipher the underlying biological importance of the [2Fe–2S] cluster of NAF-1 in vivo

  15. CLUSTER DE PEQUENAS E MÉDIAS EMPRESAS: A CONFIGURAÇÃO ORGANIZACIONAL DO PARQUE DE SOFTWARE DE CURITIBA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jansen Maia Del Corso

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available O objetivo deste trabalho é analisar como um cluster se organiza para se adaptar a um ambiente competitivo, rápido, dinâmico e intensivo em conhecimentos dos dias atuais. Essa é uma pesquisa explicativa, de métodos qualitativos, utilizando como estratégia de pesquisa o estudo de caso. Identificou-se que o Parque de Software de Curitiba não apresenta desenvolvidas todas as vantagens de um cluster, devido ao reduzido número de integrantes. Como conclusão, a configuração organizacional do Parque de Software de Curitiba é apontada como mais adaptada ao ambiente competitivo do século XXI, pois une os polos ecléticos e especialistas.

  16. Higher-spin cluster algorithms: the Heisenberg spin and U(1) quantum link models

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chudnovsky, V

    2000-03-01

    I discuss here how the highly-efficient spin-1/2 cluster algorithm for the Heisenberg antiferromagnet may be extended to higher-dimensional representations; some numerical results are provided. The same extensions can be used for the U(1) flux cluster algorithm, but have not yielded signals of the desired Coulomb phase of the system.

  17. Higher-spin cluster algorithms: the Heisenberg spin and U(1) quantum link models

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chudnovsky, V.

    2000-01-01

    I discuss here how the highly-efficient spin-1/2 cluster algorithm for the Heisenberg antiferromagnet may be extended to higher-dimensional representations; some numerical results are provided. The same extensions can be used for the U(1) flux cluster algorithm, but have not yielded signals of the desired Coulomb phase of the system

  18. Skinning of argon clusters by Coulomb explosion induced with an intense femtosecond laser pulse

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sakabe, S.; Shirai, K.; Hashida, M.; Shimizu, S.; Masuno, S.

    2006-01-01

    The energy distributions of ions emitted from argon clusters Coulomb exploded at an intensity of 17 W/cm 2 with an intense femtosecond laser have been experimentally studied. The power m of energy E of the ion energy distribution (dN/dE∼E m ) is expected to be 1/2 for spherical ion clusters, but it is in fact reduced smaller than 1/2 as the laser intensity is decreased. This reduction can be well interpreted as resulting from the instantaneous ionization of the surface of the cluster. The validity of this interpretation was confirmed by experiments with double pulse irradiation. A cluster irradiated by the first pulse survives as a skinned cluster, and the remaining core part is Coulomb exploded by the second pulse. It is shown that a cluster can be skinned by an intense short laser pulse, and the laser-intensity dependence of the skinned layer thickness can be reasonably explained by the laser-induced space charge field created in the cluster

  19. Deposition of size-selected atomic clusters on surfaces

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carroll, S.J.

    1999-06-01

    This dissertation presents technical developments and experimental and computational investigations concerned with the deposition of atomic clusters onto surfaces. It consists of a collection of papers, in which the main body of results are contained, and four chapters presenting a subject review, computational and experimental techniques and a summary of the results presented in full within the papers. Technical work includes the optimization of an existing gas condensation cluster source based on evaporation, and the design, construction and optimization of a new gas condensation cluster source based on RF magnetron sputtering (detailed in Paper 1). The result of cluster deposition onto surfaces is found to depend on the cluster deposition energy; three impact energy regimes are explored in this work. (1) Low energy: n clusters create a defect in the surface, which pins the cluster in place, inhibiting cluster diffusion at room temperature (Paper V). (3) High energy: > 50 eV/atom. The clusters implant into the surface. For Ag 20 -Ag 200 clusters, the implantation depth is found to scale linearly with the impact energy and inversely with the cross-sectional area of the cluster, with an offset due to energy lost to the elastic compression of the surface (Paper VI). For smaller (Ag 3 ) clusters the orientation of the cluster with respect to the surface and the precise impact site play an important role; the impact energy has to be 'focused' in order for cluster implantation to occur (Paper VII). The application of deposited clusters for the creation of Si nanostructures by plasma etching is explored in Paper VIII. (author)

  20. Dynamical Mass Measurements of Contaminated Galaxy Clusters Using Support Distribution Machines

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ntampaka, Michelle; Trac, Hy; Sutherland, Dougal; Fromenteau, Sebastien; Poczos, Barnabas; Schneider, Jeff

    2018-01-01

    We study dynamical mass measurements of galaxy clusters contaminated by interlopers and show that a modern machine learning (ML) algorithm can predict masses by better than a factor of two compared to a standard scaling relation approach. We create two mock catalogs from Multidark’s publicly available N-body MDPL1 simulation, one with perfect galaxy cluster membership infor- mation and the other where a simple cylindrical cut around the cluster center allows interlopers to contaminate the clusters. In the standard approach, we use a power-law scaling relation to infer cluster mass from galaxy line-of-sight (LOS) velocity dispersion. Assuming perfect membership knowledge, this unrealistic case produces a wide fractional mass error distribution, with a width E=0.87. Interlopers introduce additional scatter, significantly widening the error distribution further (E=2.13). We employ the support distribution machine (SDM) class of algorithms to learn from distributions of data to predict single values. Applied to distributions of galaxy observables such as LOS velocity and projected distance from the cluster center, SDM yields better than a factor-of-two improvement (E=0.67) for the contaminated case. Remarkably, SDM applied to contaminated clusters is better able to recover masses than even the scaling relation approach applied to uncon- taminated clusters. We show that the SDM method more accurately reproduces the cluster mass function, making it a valuable tool for employing cluster observations to evaluate cosmological models.

  1. Probing the structural and electronic properties of cationic rubidium-gold clusters: [AunRb]+ (n = 1-10)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Ya-Ru; Zhang, Hai-Rong; Qian, Yu; Duan, Xu-Chao; Hu, Yan-Fei

    2016-03-01

    Density functional theory has been applied to study the geometric structures, relative stabilities, and electronic properties of cationic [AunRb]+ and Aun + 1+ (n = 1-10) clusters. For the lowest energy structures of [AunRb]+ clusters, the planar to three-dimensional transformation is found to occur at cluster size n = 4 and the Rb atoms prefer being located at the most highly coordinated position. The trends of the averaged atomic binding energies, fragmentation energies, second-order difference of energies, and energy gaps show pronounced even-odd alternations. It indicated that the clusters containing odd number of atoms maintain greater stability than the clusters in the vicinity. In particular, the [Au6Rb]+ clusters are the most stable isomer for [AunRb]+ clusters in the region of n = 1-10. The charges in [AunRb]+ clusters transfer from the Rb atoms to Aun host. Density of states revealed that the Au-5d, Au-5p, and Rb-4p orbitals hardly participated in bonding. In addition, it is found that the most favourable channel of the [AunRb]+ clusters is Rb+ cation ejection. The electronic localisation function (ELF) analysis of the [AunRb]+ clusters shown that strong interactions are not revealed in this study.

  2. THE MULTI-EPOCH NEARBY CLUSTER SURVEY: TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA RATE MEASUREMENT IN z {approx} 0.1 CLUSTERS AND THE LATE-TIME DELAY TIME DISTRIBUTION

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sand, David J.; Graham, Melissa L. [Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network, 6740 Cortona Drive, Suite 102, Santa Barbara, CA 93117 (United States); Bildfell, Chris; Pritchet, Chris [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Victoria, P.O. Box 3055, STN CSC, Victoria BC V8W 3P6 (Canada); Zaritsky, Dennis; Just, Dennis W.; Herbert-Fort, Stephane [Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Hoekstra, Henk [Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Niels Bohrweg 2, NL-2333 CA Leiden (Netherlands); Sivanandam, Suresh [Dunlap Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics, 50 St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H4 (Canada); Foley, Ryan J. [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Mahdavi, Andisheh, E-mail: dsand@lcogt.net [Department of Physics and Astronomy, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA 94132 (United States)

    2012-02-20

    We describe the Multi-Epoch Nearby Cluster Survey, designed to measure the cluster Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) rate in a sample of 57 X-ray selected galaxy clusters, with redshifts of 0.05 < z < 0.15. Utilizing our real-time analysis pipeline, we spectroscopically confirmed twenty-three cluster SNe Ia, four of which were intracluster events. Using our deep Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope/MegaCam imaging, we measured total stellar luminosities in each of our galaxy clusters, and we performed detailed supernova (SN) detection efficiency simulations. Bringing these ingredients together, we measure an overall cluster SN Ia rate within R{sub 200} (1 Mpc) of 0.042{sup +0.012}{sub -0.010}{sup +0.010}{sub -0.008} SNuM (0.049{sup +0.016}{sub -0.014}{sup +0.005}{sub -0.004} SNuM) and an SN Ia rate within red-sequence galaxies of 0.041{sup +0.015}{sub -0.015}{sup +0.005}{sub -0.010} SNuM (0.041{sup +0.019}{sub -0.015}{sup +0.005}{sub -0.004} SNuM). The red-sequence SN Ia rate is consistent with published rates in early-type/elliptical galaxies in the 'field'. Using our red-sequence SN Ia rate, and other cluster SN measurements in early-type galaxies up to z {approx} 1, we derive the late-time (>2 Gyr) delay time distribution (DTD) of SN Ia assuming a cluster early-type galaxy star formation epoch of z{sub f} = 3. Assuming a power-law form for the DTD, {Psi}(t){proportional_to}t{sup s} , we find s = -1.62 {+-} 0.54. This result is consistent with predictions for the double degenerate SN Ia progenitor scenario (s {approx} -1) and is also in line with recent calculations for the double detonation explosion mechanism (s {approx} -2). The most recent calculations of the single degenerate scenario DTD predicts an order-of-magnitude drop-off in SN Ia rate {approx}6-7 Gyr after stellar formation, and the observed cluster rates cannot rule this out.

  3. Características dos cachos e bagas de uvas ‘Centennial Seedless’ tratadas com thidiazuron e ácido giberélico / Characteristics of clusters and berries of ‘Centennial Seedless’ table grapes treated with thidiazuron and giberellic acid

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Willian Rodrigues Macedo

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available Com o objetivo de avaliar os efeitos das doses de ácido giberélico (AG3 e do thidiazuron (TDZ nas características dos cachos e bagas da uva ‘Centennial Seedless’, um experimento foi realizado em um vinhedo comercial em São Miguel Arcanjo (SP. Os tratamentos consistiram de AG3 nas doses de 0 e 5 mg L-1 associados às doses de 0, 2, 4, 6, 8 e 10 mg L-1 de TDZ, sendo estes reguladores vegetais aplicados aos 15 dias após o pleno florescimento, via pulverização direta nos cachos. Foram avaliadas as variáveis diâmetro do pedicelo, índice de esbagoamento, massa, comprimento e largura dos cachos, bagas e engaços; teores de sólidos solúveis, pH, acidez titulável e relação SS/AT do mosto. A dose de 8 mg L-1 de TDZ associada a 5 mg L-1 de AG3, resultou em maiores médias de massa, comprimento e largura dos cachos, sendo que esta interação não alterou o pH, a relação SS/AT e o índice de esbagoamento dos cachos. O TDZ promoveu aumentos lineares sobre a massa e largura das bagas e reduziu os teores de sólidos solúveis, sendo que do ponto de vista agronômico a dose de 8 mg L-1, apresentou-se mais promissora para uso comercial.Abstract With the objective of evaluating the effects of gibberellic acid (GA3 and thidiazuron (TDZ on the physicochemical characteristics of ‘Centennial Seedless’ table grapes a trial was carried out in a commercial vineyard located in São Miguel Arcanjo (SP, Brazil. The treatments consisted of GA3 on the doses at 0 and 5 mg L-1 associated to 0, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 mg L-1 of thidiazuron, applied 15 days after full bloom, sprayed directly to the clusters. The following variables were evaluated: pedicel diameter, drop index, weight, length and width of clusters, berries and rachis; soluble solutes content, pH, titratable acidity and ratio SS/TA of the juice. The dose at 8 mg L-1 of TDZ associated to 5 mg L-1 of AG3 resulted in the highest means of cluster weight, length and width, this interaction did not

  4. Main: 1E1E [RPSD[Archive

    Lifescience Database Archive (English)

    Full Text Available Mays Molecule: Beta-Glucosidase; Chain: A, B; Engineered: Yes Glycoside Hydrolase 3.2.1.21 (Beta-Glucosidas..., B.Henrissat, A.Esen Crystal Structure Of A Monocotyledon (Maize Zmglu1) Beta-Gl...55-566.|PDB; 1E55; X-ray; A/B=55-566.|PDB; 1E56; X-ray; A/B=55-566.|PDB; 1H49; X-ray; A/B=55-566.|PDB; 1HXJ; X-ray; A/B=60-566.|Mai...ze-2DPAGE; P49235; COLEOPTILE.|MaizeDB; 13870; -.|InterPro

  5. Disintegration of swift carbon clusters during passage through matter

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Koch, K.; Otteken, D.; Tuszynski, W.; Seidl, M.; Voit, H.

    2003-01-01

    Thin luminescent foils covered upstream with layers of Formvar or gold of various thicknesses were bombarded with C 8 clusters with energies between 5 and 10 MeV. The C 8 induced relative luminescence yield Φ 8 increases with growing layer thickness and approaches smoothly the value 8Φ 1 , i.e., the luminescence yield induced by eight well-separated C 1 cluster constituents. This is a clear demonstration of the gradual separation between the cluster constituents during the passage of the cluster through the layers. The layer thickness necessary to separate cluster constituents far enough to act as independent atomic ions with respect to the luminescence process was calculated. The result is that Formvar layers with a thickness of about 1150 nm or ≅250-nm-thick gold layers are necessary to establish this mutual independence of the cluster constituents. Both calculated values agree roughly with the layer thickness obtained from an extrapolation of the experimental data

  6. Atypical gunshot injury to the right side of the face with the bullet lodged in the carotid sheath: a case report

    OpenAIRE

    Ongom, Peter A; Kijjambu, Stephen C; Jombwe, Josephat

    2014-01-01

    Introduction Gunshot injuries of the head and neck from the AK-47 rifle (a common assault rifle, submachine gun type) are a significant contributor to morbidity and mortality among civilians in Sub-Saharan Africa. They may cause significant damage to the closely arranged structures in this region, and the bullet’s trajectory can be very difficult to determine. We present an unusual case of gunshot injury with an atypical bullet entry wound, profound injury to the face, lodgment in the right c...

  7. On the origin of high spin states (J > Jsub(max) of IBA=10) and their enhanced E1 decay mode in 218Ra

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gai, M.

    1984-01-01

    The high spin states of 218 Ra exhibit a band of alternating parity states with enhanced E1 decay mode (B(E1) >=10 -2 W.u.). Various theoretical models are discussed, such as the octupole model, f and g boson model, second order E1 operator in IBA1 model, and the cluster model. The enhanced E1 deexcitation favors the cluster model. The low spin negative parity states lie on a J(J+1) trajectory contrary to the assumed vibrational character of the negative parity states in 218 Ra. A change in the character of states above the 11 - state is observed via a change in the moment of inertia and a decrease in the B(E1)/B(E2) branch ratios. Two quasi-particle 11 - states systematically occurring in the Ra-isotopes may be responsible for this change. The well known effect of loss of collectivity arising from two quasi-particle states, as observed in the hindrance of B(E2), is suggested to more dramatically hinder the B(E1) and lead to a reduction in the branch ratio B(E1)/B(E2). This observation suggests that the E1 enhancement is of collective character

  8. Plasma hydrodynamics of the intense laser-cluster interaction*

    Science.gov (United States)

    Milchberg, Howard

    2002-11-01

    We present a 1D hydrodynamic model of the intense laser-cluster interaction in which the laser field is treated self-consistently. We find that for clusters initially as small as 25Å in radius, for which the hydrodynamic model is appropriate, nonuniform expansion of the heated material results in long-time resonance of the laser field at the critical density plasma layer. A significant result of this is that the ponderomotive force, which is enhanced at the critical density surface, can be large enough to strongly modify the plasma hydrodynamics, even at laser intensities as low as 10^15 W/cm^2 for 800 nm laser pulses. Recent experiments in EUV and x-ray generation as a function of laser pulsewidth [1], and femtosecond time-resolved measurements of cluster transient polarizability [2] provide strong support for the basic physics of this model. Recent results using a 2D hybrid fluid/PIC code show qualitative agreement with the 1D hydrocode [3]. *Work supported by the National Science Foundation and the EUV-LLC. 1. E. Parra, I. Alexeev, J. Fan, K. Kim, S.J. McNaught, and H. M. Milchberg, Phys. Rev. E 62, R5931 (2000). 2. K.Y. Kim, I. Alexeev, E. Parra, and H.M. Milchberg, submitted for publication. 3. T. Taguchi, T. Antonsen, and H.M Milchberg, this meeting.

  9. Cluster observations of EMIC triggered emissions in association with Pc1 waves near Earth's plasmapause

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pickett, J. S.; Grison, B.; Omura, Y.; Engebretson, M. J.; Dandouras, I.; Masson, A.; Adrian, M. L.; Santolík, O.; Décréau, P. M. E.; Cornilleau-Wehrlin, N.; Constantinescu, D.

    2010-05-01

    The Cluster spacecraft were favorably positioned on the nightside near the equatorial plasmapause of Earth at L ˜ 4.3 on 30 March 2002 to observe electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) rising tone emissions in association with Pc1 waves at 1.5 Hz. The EMIC rising tone emissions were found to be left-hand, circularly polarized, dispersive, and propagating away from the equator. Their burstiness and dispersion of ˜30s/Hz rising out of the 1.5 Hz Pc1 waves are consistent with their identification as EMIC triggered chorus emissions, the first to be reported through in situ observations near the plasmapause. Along with the expected H+ ring current ions seen at higher energies (>300 eV), lower energy ions (300 eV and less) were observed during the most intense EMIC triggered emission events. Nonlinear wave-particle interactions via cyclotron resonance between the ˜2-10 keV H+ ions with temperature anisotropy and the linearly-amplified Pc1 waves are suggested as a possible generation mechanism for the EMIC triggered emissions.

  10. Neutron activation and the JFK assassination. Part 1. Data and interpretation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rahn, K.A.

    2004-01-01

    Five lead fragments from bullet cores from the assassination of American President John F. Kennedy in 1963 were analyzed twice by NAA, first by the FBI in 1964 and then by Vincent P. Guinn in 1977. Their concentrations of Sb have provided invaluable information about the number and origin of bullets that hit Kennedy and Texas Governor John B. Connally. While both analyses appeared to group the fragments into a body shot and a head shot, the FBI set contained a systematic error and Guinn's results from quarters of test bullets showed that the indicator element Sb varied enough over quarters to potentially merge the groups. The latter problem was resolved by the FBI replicate analyses, which showed that antimony was nearly homogeneous on the small scales of the fragments, and by the mechanism by which jacketed bullets break when hitting bone, which generates tiny fragments from a single break near the middle of the lead core. They collectively meant that the fragments within each group were formed on the scale of subfragments. The two groups were just as they appear because the larger quarter-bullet heterogeneities did not apply. This result substantiates Guinn's original conclusion that two and only two bullets from Lee Harvey Oswald's rifle struck the two men. (author)

  11. First-principles study on stability, and growth strategies of small AlnZr (n=1-9) clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Zhi; Zhou, Zhonghao; Wang, Hongbin; Li, Shengli; Zhao, Zhen

    2016-09-01

    The geometries, relative stability as well as growth strategies of the AlnZr (n=1-9) clusters are investigated with spin polarized density functional theory: BLYP. The results reveal that the AlnZr clusters are more likely to form the dense accumulation structures than the AlN (N=1-10) clusters. The average binding energies of AlnZr are higher than those of AlN clusters. The AlnZr (n=3, 5, and 7) clusters are more stable than others by the differences of the total binding energies. Mülliken population analysis for the AlnZr clusters shows that the electron's adsorption ability of Zr is slightly lower than that of Al except for AlZr cluster. Local peaks of the HOMO-LUMO gap curve are found at n=3, 5, and 7. The reaction energies of AlnZr are higher, which means that AlnZr clusters are easier to react with Al clusters. Zr atom preferential reacts with Al2 cluster. Local peaks of the magnetic dipole moments are found at n=2, 5, and 8.

  12. A data-driven approach to estimating the number of clusters in hierarchical clustering [version 1; referees: 2 approved, 1 approved with reservations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antoine E. Zambelli

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available DNA microarray and gene expression problems often require a researcher to perform clustering on their data in a bid to better understand its structure. In cases where the number of clusters is not known, one can resort to hierarchical clustering methods. However, there currently exist very few automated algorithms for determining the true number of clusters in the data. We propose two new methods (mode and maximum difference for estimating the number of clusters in a hierarchical clustering framework to create a fully automated process with no human intervention. These methods are compared to the established elbow and gap statistic algorithms using simulated datasets and the Biobase Gene ExpressionSet. We also explore a data mixing procedure inspired by cross validation techniques. We find that the overall performance of the maximum difference method is comparable or greater to that of the gap statistic in multi-cluster scenarios, and achieves that performance at a fraction of the computational cost. This method also responds well to our mixing procedure, which opens the door to future research. We conclude that both the mode and maximum difference methods warrant further study related to their mixing and cross-validation potential. We particularly recommend the use of the maximum difference method in multi-cluster scenarios given its accuracy and execution times, and present it as an alternative to existing algorithms.

  13. Multifactorial comparative proteomic study of cytochrome P450 2E1 function in chronic alcohol administration.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuan Wang

    Full Text Available With the use of iTRAQ technique, a multifactorial comparative proteomic study can be performed. In this study, to obtain an overview of ethanol, CYP2E1 and gender effects on liver injury and gain more insight into the underlying molecular mechanism, mouse liver proteomes were quantitatively analyzed using iTRAQ under eight conditions including mice of different genders, wild type versus CYP2E1 knockout, and normal versus alcohol diet. A series of statistical and bioinformatic analyses were explored to simplify and clarify multifactorial comparative proteomic data. First, with the Principle Component analysis, six proteins, CYP2E1, FAM25, CA3, BHMT, HIBADH and ECHS1, involved in oxidation reduction, energy and lipid metabolism and amino acid metabolism, were identified as the most differentially expressed gene products across all of the experimental conditions of our chronic alcoholism model. Second, hierarchical clustering analysis showed CYP2E1 knockout played a primary role in the overall differential protein expression compared with ethanol and gender factors. Furthermore, pair-wise multiple comparisons have revealed that the only significant expression difference lied in wild-type and CYP2E1 knockout mice both treated with ethanol. Third, K-mean clustering analysis indicated that the CYP2E1 knockout had the reverse effect on ethanol induced oxidative stress and lipid oxidation. More importantly, IPA analysis of proteomic data inferred that the gene expressions of two upstream regulators, NRF2 and PPARα, regulated by chronic alcohol feeding and CYP2E1 knockout, are involved in ethanol induced oxidative stress and lipid oxidation. The present study provides an effectively comprehensive data analysis strategy to compare multiple biological factors, contributing to biochemical effects of alcohol on the liver. The mass spectrometry proteomics data have been deposited to the ProteomeXchange with data set identifier of PXD000635.

  14. Swarm v2: highly-scalable and high-resolution amplicon clustering.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mahé, Frédéric; Rognes, Torbjørn; Quince, Christopher; de Vargas, Colomban; Dunthorn, Micah

    2015-01-01

    Previously we presented Swarm v1, a novel and open source amplicon clustering program that produced fine-scale molecular operational taxonomic units (OTUs), free of arbitrary global clustering thresholds and input-order dependency. Swarm v1 worked with an initial phase that used iterative single-linkage with a local clustering threshold (d), followed by a phase that used the internal abundance structures of clusters to break chained OTUs. Here we present Swarm v2, which has two important novel features: (1) a new algorithm for d = 1 that allows the computation time of the program to scale linearly with increasing amounts of data; and (2) the new fastidious option that reduces under-grouping by grafting low abundant OTUs (e.g., singletons and doubletons) onto larger ones. Swarm v2 also directly integrates the clustering and breaking phases, dereplicates sequencing reads with d = 0, outputs OTU representatives in fasta format, and plots individual OTUs as two-dimensional networks.

  15. Swarm v2: highly-scalable and high-resolution amplicon clustering

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Frédéric Mahé

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Previously we presented Swarm v1, a novel and open source amplicon clustering program that produced fine-scale molecular operational taxonomic units (OTUs, free of arbitrary global clustering thresholds and input-order dependency. Swarm v1 worked with an initial phase that used iterative single-linkage with a local clustering threshold (d, followed by a phase that used the internal abundance structures of clusters to break chained OTUs. Here we present Swarm v2, which has two important novel features: (1 a new algorithm for d = 1 that allows the computation time of the program to scale linearly with increasing amounts of data; and (2 the new fastidious option that reduces under-grouping by grafting low abundant OTUs (e.g., singletons and doubletons onto larger ones. Swarm v2 also directly integrates the clustering and breaking phases, dereplicates sequencing reads with d = 0, outputs OTU representatives in fasta format, and plots individual OTUs as two-dimensional networks.

  16. Comprehensive cluster analysis with Transitivity Clustering.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wittkop, Tobias; Emig, Dorothea; Truss, Anke; Albrecht, Mario; Böcker, Sebastian; Baumbach, Jan

    2011-03-01

    Transitivity Clustering is a method for the partitioning of biological data into groups of similar objects, such as genes, for instance. It provides integrated access to various functions addressing each step of a typical cluster analysis. To facilitate this, Transitivity Clustering is accessible online and offers three user-friendly interfaces: a powerful stand-alone version, a web interface, and a collection of Cytoscape plug-ins. In this paper, we describe three major workflows: (i) protein (super)family detection with Cytoscape, (ii) protein homology detection with incomplete gold standards and (iii) clustering of gene expression data. This protocol guides the user through the most important features of Transitivity Clustering and takes ∼1 h to complete.

  17. Numerical Simulations of Light Bullets, Using The Full Vector, Time Dependent, Nonlinear Maxwell Equations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goorjian, Peter M.; Silberberg, Yaron; Kwak, Dochan (Technical Monitor)

    1995-01-01

    This paper will present results in computational nonlinear optics. An algorithm will be described that solves the full vector nonlinear Maxwell's equations exactly without the approximations that we currently made. Present methods solve a reduced scalar wave equation, namely the nonlinear Schrodinger equation, and neglect the optical carrier. Also, results will be shown of calculations of 2-D electromagnetic nonlinear waves computed by directly integrating in time the nonlinear vector Maxwell's equations. The results will include simulations of 'light bullet' like pulses. Here diffraction and dispersion will be counteracted by nonlinear effects. The time integration efficiently implements linear and nonlinear convolutions for the electric polarization, and can take into account such quantum effects as Karr and Raman interactions. The present approach is robust and should permit modeling 2-D and 3-D optical soliton propagation, scattering, and switching directly from the full-vector Maxwell's equations.

  18. Cluster analysis of obesity and asthma phenotypes.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    E Rand Sutherland

    Full Text Available Asthma is a heterogeneous disease with variability among patients in characteristics such as lung function, symptoms and control, body weight, markers of inflammation, and responsiveness to glucocorticoids (GC. Cluster analysis of well-characterized cohorts can advance understanding of disease subgroups in asthma and point to unsuspected disease mechanisms. We utilized an hypothesis-free cluster analytical approach to define the contribution of obesity and related variables to asthma phenotype.In a cohort of clinical trial participants (n = 250, minimum-variance hierarchical clustering was used to identify clinical and inflammatory biomarkers important in determining disease cluster membership in mild and moderate persistent asthmatics. In a subset of participants, GC sensitivity was assessed via expression of GC receptor alpha (GCRα and induction of MAP kinase phosphatase-1 (MKP-1 expression by dexamethasone. Four asthma clusters were identified, with body mass index (BMI, kg/m(2 and severity of asthma symptoms (AEQ score the most significant determinants of cluster membership (F = 57.1, p<0.0001 and F = 44.8, p<0.0001, respectively. Two clusters were composed of predominantly obese individuals; these two obese asthma clusters differed from one another with regard to age of asthma onset, measures of asthma symptoms (AEQ and control (ACQ, exhaled nitric oxide concentration (F(ENO and airway hyperresponsiveness (methacholine PC(20 but were similar with regard to measures of lung function (FEV(1 (% and FEV(1/FVC, airway eosinophilia, IgE, leptin, adiponectin and C-reactive protein (hsCRP. Members of obese clusters demonstrated evidence of reduced expression of GCRα, a finding which was correlated with a reduced induction of MKP-1 expression by dexamethasoneObesity is an important determinant of asthma phenotype in adults. There is heterogeneity in expression of clinical and inflammatory biomarkers of asthma across obese individuals

  19. A measurement of CMB cluster lensing with SPT and DES year 1 data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baxter, E. J.; Raghunathan, S.; Crawford, T. M.; Fosalba, P.; Hou, Z.; Holder, G. P.; Omori, Y.; Patil, S.; Rozo, E.; Abbott, T. M. C.; Annis, J.; Aylor, K.; Benoit-Lévy, A.; Benson, B. A.; Bertin, E.; Bleem, L.; Buckley-Geer, E.; Burke, D. L.; Carlstrom, J.; Carnero Rosell, A.; Carrasco Kind, M.; Carretero, J.; Chang, C. L.; Cho, H.-M.; Crites, A. T.; Crocce, M.; Cunha, C. E.; da Costa, L. N.; D'Andrea, C. B.; Davis, C.; de Haan, T.; Desai, S.; Dietrich, J. P.; Dobbs, M. A.; Dodelson, S.; Doel, P.; Drlica-Wagner, A.; Estrada, J.; Everett, W. B.; Fausti Neto, A.; Flaugher, B.; Frieman, J.; García-Bellido, J.; George, E. M.; Gaztanaga, E.; Giannantonio, T.; Gruen, D.; Gruendl, R. A.; Gschwend, J.; Gutierrez, G.; Halverson, N. W.; Harrington, N. L.; Hartley, W. G.; Holzapfel, W. L.; Honscheid, K.; Hrubes, J. D.; Jain, B.; James, D. J.; Jarvis, M.; Jeltema, T.; Knox, L.; Krause, E.; Kuehn, K.; Kuhlmann, S.; Kuropatkin, N.; Lahav, O.; Lee, A. T.; Leitch, E. M.; Li, T. S.; Lima, M.; Luong-Van, D.; Manzotti, A.; March, M.; Marrone, D. P.; Marshall, J. L.; Martini, P.; McMahon, J. J.; Melchior, P.; Menanteau, F.; Meyer, S. S.; Miller, C. J.; Miquel, R.; Mocanu, L. M.; Mohr, J. J.; Natoli, T.; Nord, B.; Ogando, R. L. C.; Padin, S.; Plazas, A. A.; Pryke, C.; Rapetti, D.; Reichardt, C. L.; Romer, A. K.; Roodman, A.; Ruhl, J. E.; Rykoff, E.; Sako, M.; Sanchez, E.; Sayre, J. T.; Scarpine, V.; Schaffer, K. K.; Schindler, R.; Schubnell, M.; Sevilla-Noarbe, I.; Shirokoff, E.; Smith, M.; Smith, R. C.; Soares-Santos, M.; Sobreira, F.; Staniszewski, Z.; Stark, A.; Story, K.; Suchyta, E.; Tarle, G.; Thomas, D.; Troxel, M. A.; Vanderlinde, K.; Vieira, J. D.; Walker, A. R.; Williamson, R.; Zhang, Y.; Zuntz, J.

    2018-05-01

    Clusters of galaxies gravitationally lens the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation, resulting in a distinct imprint in the CMB on arcminute scales. Measurement of this effect offers a promising way to constrain the masses of galaxy clusters, particularly those at high redshift. We use CMB maps from the South Pole Telescope Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) survey to measure the CMB lensing signal around galaxy clusters identified in optical imaging from first year observations of the Dark Energy Survey. The cluster catalogue used in this analysis contains 3697 members with mean redshift of \\bar{z} = 0.45. We detect lensing of the CMB by the galaxy clusters at 8.1σ significance. Using the measured lensing signal, we constrain the amplitude of the relation between cluster mass and optical richness to roughly 17 {per cent} precision, finding good agreement with recent constraints obtained with galaxy lensing. The error budget is dominated by statistical noise but includes significant contributions from systematic biases due to the thermal SZ effect and cluster miscentring.

  20. The Yeast Nbp35-Cfd1 Cytosolic Iron-Sulfur Cluster Scaffold Is an ATPase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Camire, Eric J; Grossman, John D; Thole, Grace J; Fleischman, Nicholas M; Perlstein, Deborah L

    2015-09-25

    Nbp35 and Cfd1 are prototypical members of the MRP/Nbp35 class of iron-sulfur (FeS) cluster scaffolds that function to assemble nascent FeS clusters for transfer to FeS-requiring enzymes. Both proteins contain a conserved NTPase domain that genetic studies have demonstrated is essential for their cluster assembly activity inside the cell. It was recently reported that these proteins possess no or very low nucleotide hydrolysis activity in vitro, and thus the role of the NTPase domain in cluster biogenesis has remained uncertain. We have reexamined the NTPase activity of Nbp35, Cfd1, and their complex. Using in vitro assays and site-directed mutagenesis, we demonstrate that the Nbp35 homodimer and the Nbp35-Cfd1 heterodimer are ATPases, whereas the Cfd1 homodimer exhibited no or very low ATPase activity. We ruled out the possibility that the observed ATP hydrolysis activity might result from a contaminating ATPase by showing that mutation of key active site residues reduced activity to background levels. Finally, we demonstrate that the fluorescent ATP analog 2'/3'-O-(N'-methylanthraniloyl)-ATP (mantATP) binds stoichiometrically to Nbp35 with a KD = 15.6 μM and that an Nbp35 mutant deficient in ATP hydrolysis activity also displays an increased KD for mantATP. Together, our results demonstrate that the cytosolic iron-sulfur cluster assembly scaffold is an ATPase and pave the way for interrogating the role of nucleotide hydrolysis in cluster biogenesis by this large family of cluster scaffolding proteins found across all domains of life. © 2015 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

  1. Bone-patch type secondary projectiles: A report on two shots fired at point-blank range using hollow point bullets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malbranque, S; Jousset, N; Nedelcu, C; Rougé-Maillart, C

    2014-12-01

    The number of head wounds due to firearms remains low in France because these cases are primarily linked to suicide (or attempted suicide) and, to a lesser extent, to attacks or hunting accidents [1]. Characterized by the impact of a projectile, which in most cases is made of metal, at high levels of kinetic energy, such acts generally result in severe trans-cerebral lesions with significant levels of morbidity/mortality [2]. Seldom are cases reported in the literature that give a detailed study of intracranial foreign bodies made of bone in such situations [3]. Here we report on the case of two suicides resulting from a transcranial gunshot wounds caused by weapons and ammunition issued by the French police force. Each case helped distinguish a characteristic bone fragment, in the form of a "patch", equivalent in size to the caliber of the bullet. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. DETAILED CHEMICAL ABUNDANCES OF FOUR STARS IN THE UNUSUAL GLOBULAR CLUSTER PALOMAR 1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sakari, Charli M.; Venn, Kim A.; Irwin, Mike; Aoki, Wako; Arimoto, Nobuo; Dotter, Aaron

    2011-01-01

    Detailed chemical abundances for 21 elements are presented for four red giants in the anomalous outer halo globular cluster Palomar 1 (R GC = 17.2 kpc, Z = 3.6 kpc) using high-resolution (R = 36, 000) spectra from the High Dispersion Spectrograph on the Subaru Telescope. Pal 1 has long been considered unusual because of its low surface brightness, sparse red giant branch, young age, and its possible association with two extragalactic streams of stars. This paper shows that its chemistry further confirms its unusual nature. The mean metallicity of the four stars, [Fe/H] = -0.60 ± 0.01, is high for a globular cluster so far from the Galactic center, but is low for a typical open cluster. The [α/Fe] ratios, though in agreement with the Galactic stars within the 1σ errors, agree best with the lower values in dwarf galaxies. No signs of the Na/O anticorrelation are detected in Pal 1, though Na appears to be marginally high in all four stars. Pal 1's neutron-capture elements are also unusual: its high [Ba/Y] ratio agrees best with dwarf galaxies, implying an excess of second-peak over first-peak s-process elements, while its [Eu/α] and [Ba/Eu] ratios show that Pal 1's contributions from the r-process must have differed in some way from normal Galactic stars. Therefore, Pal 1 is unusual chemically, as well in its other properties. Pal 1 shares some of its unusual abundance characteristics with the young clusters associated with the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy remnant and the intermediate-age LMC clusters, and could be chemically associated with the Canis Majoris overdensity; however, it does not seem to be similar to the Monoceros/Galactic Anticenter Stellar Stream.

  3. Quadrupole deformation and clusterization in nuclei

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cseh, J.; Algora, A.; Darai, J.; Hess, P.O.

    2004-01-01

    The investigation of exotic nuclear shapes, e.g. superdeformed and hyperdeformed states (in which the atomic nucleus has a spheroidal shape with ratios of main axes of 2:1 and 3:1, respectively) is one of the most interesting topics in recent nuclear structure studies. The appearance of exotic cluster configurations (or exotic cluster decay) is another issue of utmost interest. The combination of these two problems brings us to an exciting question: what is the interrelation of these two phenomena, i.e. what are the possible clusterizations of nuclear states with exotic shape. Recently we have addressed this question from the angle of both the binary and the ternary clusterizations. We apply methods which can be generalised for more complicated multicluster-configurations in a straightforward way. The basic concept of this work is that when we describe the composition of an atomic nucleus from smaller nuclei (clusters) then we take into account both of the two complementary natural laws, which govern this kind of phenomenon: the energy-minimum principle and the Pauli-exclusion principle. The crucial role of these two rules are obvious: energetically unfavoured systems are not likely to appear, and when the building blocks are fermions, like the nucleons of the atomic nuclei, then they follow the exclusion principle. However, the exact role, or relative importance of these two aspects of clusterization among di rent circumstances are not completely understood yet; the present work is meant to be a contribution to this task. Much attention has been paid to the energetic preference of various cluster-configurations of a nucleus. The methods applied along this line are partly or completely empirical ones, using information of the experimental data. Furthermore, most of these works concentrate on the simplest, i.e. binary clusterizations, especially, when the energetic calculation involves (in addition to the experimental binding energies) intercluster potentials, like

  4. Operacionalização da teoria dos ciclos de vida dos clusters. As indústrias criativas como contexto para a reflexão e o Software Educacional e de Entretenimento no Norte de Portugal como caso de estudo

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patrícia Romeiro

    2013-12-01

    Full Text Available Este artigo propõe uma reflexão sobre a dinâmica evolutiva dos clusters, à luz da teoria do ‘ciclo de vida dos clusters’ (CVC, e sobre os elementos adequados para captar, na prática, essa mesma dinâmica. Partindo de uma revisão da literatura, o estudo centra-se depois na análise de um cluster organizado - Software Educacional e de Entretenimento no Norte de Portugal. A revisão da literatura e a análise do estudo de caso permite concluir que, apesar do crescente reconhecimento da relevância dos fatores soft (ex. capital social, redes na dinâmica de um cluster, esta tende a ser frequentemente analisada a partir de dados estatísticos relacionados com o seu crescimento. Propõe-se por isso um modelo analítico capaz de combinar elementos quantitativos e qualitativos, e que permite comparar as diferentes trajetórias de evolução dos clusters.

  5. The Pan-STARRS1 Medium-deep Survey: Star Formation Quenching in Group and Cluster Environments

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jian, Hung-Yu; Lin, Lihwai; Lin, Kai-Yang; Chen, Chin-Wei [Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Academia Sinica, 106, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C. (China); Foucaud, Sebastien [Department of Earth Sciences, National Taiwan Normal University, N.88, Tingzhou Road, Sec. 4, Taipei 11677, Taiwan, R.O.C. (China); Chiueh, Tzihong [Department of Physics, National Taiwan University, 106, Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C. (China); Bower, R. G.; Cole, Shaun; Draper, P. W.; Metcalfe, N. [Institute for Computational Cosmology, Department of Physics, Durham University, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE (United Kingdom); Chen, Wen-Ping [Graduate Institute of Astronomy, National Central University, Chung-Li 32054, Taiwan, R.O.C. (China); Burgett, W. S.; Flewelling, H.; Huber, M. E.; Kaiser, N.; Kudritzki, R.-P.; Magnier, E. A.; Wainscoat, R. J.; Waters, C., E-mail: hyjian@asiaa.sinica.edu.tw [Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI 96822 (United States)

    2017-08-10

    We make use of a catalog of 1600 Pan-STARRS1 groups produced by the probability friends-of-friends algorithm to explore how the galaxy properties, i.e., the specific star formation rate (SSFR) and quiescent fraction, depend on stellar mass and group-centric radius. The work is the extension of Lin et al. In this work, powered by a stacking technique plus a background subtraction for contamination removal, a finer correction and more precise results are obtained than in our previous work. We find that while the quiescent fraction increases with decreasing group-centric radius, the median SSFRs of star-forming galaxies in groups at fixed stellar mass drop slightly from the field toward the group center. This suggests that the main quenching process in groups is likely a fast mechanism. On the other hand, a reduction in SSFRs by ∼0.2 dex is seen inside clusters as opposed to the field galaxies. If the reduction is attributed to the slow quenching effect, the slow quenching process acts dominantly in clusters. In addition, we also examine the density–color relation, where the density is defined by using a sixth-nearest-neighbor approach. Comparing the quiescent fractions contributed from the density and radial effect, we find that the density effect dominates the massive group or cluster galaxies, and the radial effect becomes more effective in less massive galaxies. The results support mergers and/or starvation as the main quenching mechanisms in the group environment, while harassment and/or starvation dominate in clusters.

  6. Hard X-ray emission from accretion shocks around galaxy clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kushnir, Doron; Waxman, Eli

    2010-02-01

    We show that the hard X-ray (HXR) emission observed from several galaxy clusters is consistent with a simple model, in which the nonthermal emission is produced by inverse Compton scattering of cosmic microwave background photons by electrons accelerated in cluster accretion shocks: The dependence of HXR surface brightness on cluster temperature is consistent with that predicted by the model, and the observed HXR luminosity is consistent with the fraction of shock thermal energy deposited in relativistic electrons being lesssim0.1. Alternative models, where the HXR emission is predicted to be correlated with the cluster thermal emission, are disfavored by the data. The implications of our predictions to future HXR observations (e.g. by NuStar, Simbol-X) and to (space/ground based) γ-ray observations (e.g. by Fermi, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS) are discussed.

  7. Hard X-ray emission from accretion shocks around galaxy clusters

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kushnir, Doron; Waxman, Eli, E-mail: doron.kushnir@weizmann.ac.il, E-mail: eli.waxman@weizmann.ac.il [Physics Faculty, Weizmann Institute of Science, PO Box 26, Rehovot (Israel)

    2010-02-01

    We show that the hard X-ray (HXR) emission observed from several galaxy clusters is consistent with a simple model, in which the nonthermal emission is produced by inverse Compton scattering of cosmic microwave background photons by electrons accelerated in cluster accretion shocks: The dependence of HXR surface brightness on cluster temperature is consistent with that predicted by the model, and the observed HXR luminosity is consistent with the fraction of shock thermal energy deposited in relativistic electrons being ∼<0.1. Alternative models, where the HXR emission is predicted to be correlated with the cluster thermal emission, are disfavored by the data. The implications of our predictions to future HXR observations (e.g. by NuStar, Simbol-X) and to (space/ground based) γ-ray observations (e.g. by Fermi, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS) are discussed.

  8. Hard X-ray emission from accretion shocks around galaxy clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kushnir, Doron; Waxman, Eli

    2010-01-01

    We show that the hard X-ray (HXR) emission observed from several galaxy clusters is consistent with a simple model, in which the nonthermal emission is produced by inverse Compton scattering of cosmic microwave background photons by electrons accelerated in cluster accretion shocks: The dependence of HXR surface brightness on cluster temperature is consistent with that predicted by the model, and the observed HXR luminosity is consistent with the fraction of shock thermal energy deposited in relativistic electrons being ∼<0.1. Alternative models, where the HXR emission is predicted to be correlated with the cluster thermal emission, are disfavored by the data. The implications of our predictions to future HXR observations (e.g. by NuStar, Simbol-X) and to (space/ground based) γ-ray observations (e.g. by Fermi, HESS, MAGIC, VERITAS) are discussed

  9. Journal of Astrophysics and Astronomy | Indian Academy of Sciences

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    2016-01-27

    Jan 27, 2016 ... ... present 18 GHz observations of the Bullet cluster using the Austalia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA), which show structure in the Sunyaev–Zeldovich effect; ... The SZE distribution in the western parts of the cluster are co-spatial with the radio halo indicative of a common origin for the hot and relativistic ...

  10. CONSTRAINING CLUSTER PHYSICS WITH THE SHAPE OF X-RAY CLUSTERS: COMPARISON OF LOCAL X-RAY CLUSTERS VERSUS ΛCDM CLUSTERS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lau, Erwin T.; Nagai, Daisuke; Kravtsov, Andrey V.; Vikhlinin, Alexey; Zentner, Andrew R.

    2012-01-01

    Recent simulations of cluster formation have demonstrated that condensation of baryons into central galaxies during cluster formation can drive the shape of the gas distribution in galaxy clusters significantly rounder out to their virial radius. These simulations generally predict stellar fractions within cluster virial radii that are ∼2-3 times larger than the stellar masses deduced from observations. In this paper, we compare ellipticity profiles of simulated clusters performed with varying input physics (radiative cooling, star formation, and supernova feedback) to the cluster ellipticity profiles derived from Chandra and ROSAT observations, in an effort to constrain the fraction of gas that cools and condenses into the central galaxies within clusters. We find that local relaxed clusters have an average ellipticity of ε = 0.18 ± 0.05 in the radial range of 0.04 ≤ r/r 500 ≤ 1. At larger radii r > 0.1r 500 , the observed ellipticity profiles agree well with the predictions of non-radiative simulations. In contrast, the ellipticity profiles of simulated clusters that include dissipative gas physics deviate significantly from the observed ellipticity profiles at all radii. The dissipative simulations overpredict (underpredict) ellipticity in the inner (outer) regions of galaxy clusters. By comparing simulations with and without dissipative gas physics, we show that gas cooling causes the gas distribution to be more oblate in the central regions, but makes the outer gas distribution more spherical. We find that late-time gas cooling and star formation are responsible for the significantly oblate gas distributions in cluster cores, but the gas shapes outside of cluster cores are set primarily by baryon dissipation at high redshift (z ≥ 2). Our results indicate that the shapes of X-ray emitting gas in galaxy clusters, especially at large radii, can be used to place constraints on cluster gas physics, making it potential probes of the history of baryonic

  11. Clustering of near clusters versus cluster compactness

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yu Gao; Yipeng Jing

    1989-01-01

    The clustering properties of near Zwicky clusters are studied by using the two-point angular correlation function. The angular correlation functions for compact and medium compact clusters, for open clusters, and for all near Zwicky clusters are estimated. The results show much stronger clustering for compact and medium compact clusters than for open clusters, and that open clusters have nearly the same clustering strength as galaxies. A detailed study of the compactness-dependence of correlation function strength is worth investigating. (author)

  12. Determination of radial peculiar velocities of galaxy clusters by means of the submillimeter spectrophotometry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sholomitskij, G.B.

    1984-01-01

    The possibility is considered to obtain from the extraatmospheric submillimeter spectrophotometry of galaxy clusters the ratios vsub(r)/Tsub(e) for clusters intergalactic gas that permits, together with the X-ray measurements of electronic temperature Tsub(e) in the case of hot scattering gas to determine absolute radial peculiar velocities vsub(r) of galaxy clusters relative to the relic radiation. By simulating such peculiar velocities as an example for the system of bandpass filters in the wavelength range 300 μm - 2 mm the accuracy of vsub(r) estimates is proved to be about 300 km/s (not taking into account the errors in Tsub(e)) the sensitivity of deeply cooled submillimeter bolometers being 1x10 -15 W/Hzsup(1/2)

  13. NFκB-mediated activation of the cellular FUT3, 5 and 6 gene cluster by herpes simplex virus type 1.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nordén, Rickard; Samuelsson, Ebba; Nyström, Kristina

    2017-11-01

    Herpes simplex virus type 1 has the ability to induce expression of a human gene cluster located on chromosome 19 upon infection. This gene cluster contains three fucosyltransferases (encoded by FUT3, FUT5 and FUT6) with the ability to add a fucose to an N-acetylglucosamine residue. Little is known regarding the transcriptional activation of these three genes in human cells. Intriguingly, herpes simplex virus type 1 activates all three genes simultaneously during infection, a situation not observed in uninfected tissue, pointing towards a virus specific mechanism for transcriptional activation. The aim of this study was to define the underlying mechanism for the herpes simplex virus type 1 activation of FUT3, FUT5 and FUT6 transcription. The transcriptional activation of the FUT-gene cluster on chromosome 19 in fibroblasts was specific, not involving adjacent genes. Moreover, inhibition of NFκB signaling through panepoxydone treatment significantly decreased the induction of FUT3, FUT5 and FUT6 transcriptional activation, as did siRNA targeting of p65, in herpes simplex virus type 1 infected fibroblasts. NFκB and p65 signaling appears to play an important role in the regulation of FUT3, FUT5 and FUT6 transcriptional activation by herpes simplex virus type 1 although additional, unidentified, viral factors might account for part of the mechanism as direct interferon mediated stimulation of NFκB was not sufficient to induce the fucosyltransferase encoding gene cluster in uninfected cells. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  14. X-Ray and optical study of low core density globular clusters NGC6144 and E3

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lan, S.-H.; Kong, A.K.H.; Verbunt, F.W.M.; Lewin, W.H.G.; Bassa, C.G.; Anderson, S.F.; Pooley, D.

    2010-01-01

    We report on the Chandra X-ray Observatory and Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations of two low coredensity globular clusters, NGC6144 and E3. By comparing the number of X-ray sources inside the half-mass radius to those outside, we found six X-ray sources within the half-mass radius of NGC6144,

  15. Spectroscopic characterization of galaxy clusters in RCS-1: spectroscopic confirmation, redshift accuracy, and dynamical mass-richness relation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gilbank, David G.; Barrientos, L. Felipe; Ellingson, Erica; Blindert, Kris; Yee, H. K. C.; Anguita, T.; Gladders, M. D.; Hall, P. B.; Hertling, G.; Infante, L.; Yan, R.; Carrasco, M.; Garcia-Vergara, Cristina; Dawson, K. S.; Lidman, C.; Morokuma, T.

    2018-05-01

    We present follow-up spectroscopic observations of galaxy clusters from the first Red-sequence Cluster Survey (RCS-1). This work focuses on two samples, a lower redshift sample of ˜30 clusters ranging in redshift from z ˜ 0.2-0.6 observed with multiobject spectroscopy (MOS) on 4-6.5-m class telescopes and a z ˜ 1 sample of ˜10 clusters 8-m class telescope observations. We examine the detection efficiency and redshift accuracy of the now widely used red-sequence technique for selecting clusters via overdensities of red-sequence galaxies. Using both these data and extended samples including previously published RCS-1 spectroscopy and spectroscopic redshifts from SDSS, we find that the red-sequence redshift using simple two-filter cluster photometric redshifts is accurate to σz ≈ 0.035(1 + z) in RCS-1. This accuracy can potentially be improved with better survey photometric calibration. For the lower redshift sample, ˜5 per cent of clusters show some (minor) contamination from secondary systems with the same red-sequence intruding into the measurement aperture of the original cluster. At z ˜ 1, the rate rises to ˜20 per cent. Approximately ten per cent of projections are expected to be serious, where the two components contribute significant numbers of their red-sequence galaxies to another cluster. Finally, we present a preliminary study of the mass-richness calibration using velocity dispersions to probe the dynamical masses of the clusters. We find a relation broadly consistent with that seen in the local universe from the WINGS sample at z ˜ 0.05.

  16. Ionothermal synthesis of discrete supertetrahedral Tn (n = 4, 5) clusters with tunable components, band gaps, and fluorescence properties.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Dan-Dan; Li, Wei; Xiong, Wei-Wei; Li, Jian-Rong; Huang, Xiao-Ying

    2018-05-01

    The preparation of crystalline molecularly supertetrahedral Tn clusters with variable sizes and components is of vital importance for the fundamental study of their physicochemical properties. However, setting up an efficient method to stabilize large discrete Tn clusters is a challenge due to their high negative charges and polymerization nature. In this work, we report on the ionothermal synthesis of three discrete T4 cluster compounds, namely [Bmmim]5[(CH3)2NH2]4[NH4][M4In16S31(SH)4]·6H2O (M = Mn (1), Zn (2), Cd (3), Bmmim = 1-buty-2,3-dimethyl-imidazolium), and four discrete T5 cluster compounds, namely [Bmmim]10[NH4]3[Cu5Ga30-xInxS52(SH)4] (x = 6.6 (5), 14.5 (6), 23.8 (7), and 30 (8)). The compound [Bmmim]10[NH4]3[Cu5Ga30S52(SH)4] (4) previously reported by us features a discrete T5 cluster. The steep UV-Vis absorption edges indicate band gaps of 2.20 eV for 1, 2.64 eV for 2, 2.69 eV for 3, 3.04 eV for 4, 2.65 eV for 5, 2.48 eV for 6, 2.32 eV for 7, and 2.30 eV for 8. The compositions of T5 clusters could be varied with the ratios of Ga : In in the starting reagents, providing an opportunity to systematically control the band gaps and fluorescence performances of T5 cluster-based compounds. This research might advance the understanding of the ionothermal preparation and functionality tuning of crystalline chalcogenides.

  17. Clustering high dimensional data

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Assent, Ira

    2012-01-01

    High-dimensional data, i.e., data described by a large number of attributes, pose specific challenges to clustering. The so-called ‘curse of dimensionality’, coined originally to describe the general increase in complexity of various computational problems as dimensionality increases, is known...... to render traditional clustering algorithms ineffective. The curse of dimensionality, among other effects, means that with increasing number of dimensions, a loss of meaningful differentiation between similar and dissimilar objects is observed. As high-dimensional objects appear almost alike, new approaches...... for clustering are required. Consequently, recent research has focused on developing techniques and clustering algorithms specifically for high-dimensional data. Still, open research issues remain. Clustering is a data mining task devoted to the automatic grouping of data based on mutual similarity. Each cluster...

  18. Clustering and correlates of screen-time and eating behaviours among young adolescents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natalie Pearson

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Screen-time and eating behaviours are associated in adolescents, but few studies have examined the clustering of these health behaviours in this age group. The identification of clustered health behaviours, and influences on adolescents’ clustered health behaviours, at the time when they are most likely to become habitual, is important for intervention design. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence and clustering of health behaviours in adolescents, and examine the sociodemographic, individual, behavioural, and home social and physical environmental correlates of clustered health behaviours. Methods Adolescents aged 11–12 years (n = 527, 48% boys completed a questionnaire during class-time which assessed screen-time (ST, fruit and vegetable (FV, and energy-dense (ED snack consumption using a Food Frequency Questionnaire. Health behaviours were categorised into high and low frequencies based on recommendations for FV and ST and median splits for ED snacks. Adolescents reported on their habits, self-efficacy, eating at the television (TV, eating and watching TV together with parents, restrictive parenting practices, and the availability and accessibility of foods within the home. Behavioural clustering was assessed using an observed over expected ratio (O/E. Correlates of clustered behaviours were examined using multivariate multinomial logistic regression. Results Approximately 70% reported having two or three health risk behaviours. Overall, O/E ratios were close to 1, which indicates clustering. The three risk behaviour combination of low FV, high ED, and high ST occurred more frequently than expected (O/E ratio = 1.06 95% CI 1.01, 1.15. Individual, behavioural, and social and physical home environmental correlates were differentially associated with behavioural clusters. Correlates consistently associated with clusters included eating ED snacks while watching TV, eating at the TV with parents, and

  19. Clustering and correlates of screen-time and eating behaviours among young adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pearson, Natalie; Griffiths, Paula; Biddle, Stuart Jh; Johnston, Julie P; McGeorge, Sonia; Haycraft, Emma

    2017-05-31

    Screen-time and eating behaviours are associated in adolescents, but few studies have examined the clustering of these health behaviours in this age group. The identification of clustered health behaviours, and influences on adolescents' clustered health behaviours, at the time when they are most likely to become habitual, is important for intervention design. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence and clustering of health behaviours in adolescents, and examine the sociodemographic, individual, behavioural, and home social and physical environmental correlates of clustered health behaviours. Adolescents aged 11-12 years (n = 527, 48% boys) completed a questionnaire during class-time which assessed screen-time (ST), fruit and vegetable (FV), and energy-dense (ED) snack consumption using a Food Frequency Questionnaire. Health behaviours were categorised into high and low frequencies based on recommendations for FV and ST and median splits for ED snacks. Adolescents reported on their habits, self-efficacy, eating at the television (TV), eating and watching TV together with parents, restrictive parenting practices, and the availability and accessibility of foods within the home. Behavioural clustering was assessed using an observed over expected ratio (O/E). Correlates of clustered behaviours were examined using multivariate multinomial logistic regression. Approximately 70% reported having two or three health risk behaviours. Overall, O/E ratios were close to 1, which indicates clustering. The three risk behaviour combination of low FV, high ED, and high ST occurred more frequently than expected (O/E ratio = 1.06 95% CI 1.01, 1.15. Individual, behavioural, and social and physical home environmental correlates were differentially associated with behavioural clusters. Correlates consistently associated with clusters included eating ED snacks while watching TV, eating at the TV with parents, and the availability and accessibility of ED snack foods

  20. Impact fusion with a segmented rail gun

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Muller, R.A.; Garwin, R.L.; Richter, B.

    1979-01-01

    The basic rail gun equations are reviewed. The delivery of E = 1 megajoule in dt = 10 nanoseconds, with a specific energy of 20 MJ/g (i.e., a bullet mass of 0.05 g) is considered. These values are taken from the requirements being considered for heavy-ion fusion. Using these numbers, we can solve immediately for the final particle velocity u/sub f/ from E = 1/2 mu/sub f/ 2 to get u/sub f/ = 200 km/sec. For a delivery time of 10 nanoseconds, this velocity implies that the projectile length is about 2 mm. Impact fusion is feasible because of the coincidence that a bullet with all dimensions roughly 2 mm has the required mass

  1. CCD photometry of the distant young open cluster NGC 7510

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sagar, R.; Bonn Univ.; Griffiths, W.K.

    1991-01-01

    CCD observations in B, V and I passbands have been used to generate deep V, (B-V) and V,(V-I) colour-magnitude diagrams for the open cluster NGC 7510. The sample consists of 592 stars reaching down to V=21 mag. There appears to be non-uniform extinction over the face of the cluster with the value of colour excess, E(B-V), ranging from 1.0 to 1.3 mag. The law of interstellar extinction in the direction of the cluster is found to be normal. A broad main sequence is clearly visible in both colour-magnitude diagrams. From the bluest part of the colour-magnitude diagrams, the true distance modulus to the cluster has been estimated as 12.5±0.3 mag and an upper limit of 10 Myr has been assigned for the cluster age. (author)

  2. Galaxy Clusters: Substructure and Mass Systematics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yu-Ying

    2010-07-01

    We calibrate the X-ray measured hydrostatic equilibrium (H.E.) mass and assess the origin of the H.E. mass systematics using 2-D spectrally measured X-ray properties. We obtained that the average X-ray mass derived from H.E. using XMM-Newton data is lower compared to the weak lensing mass from Subaru data for relaxed clusters in a sample of 12 clusters at z~0.2. This is comparable to the expectation of numerical simulations because of the non-thermal pressure support due to turbulence and bulk motions. The gas mass to weak lensing mass ratio shows no dependence on the cluster morphology, which indicates that the gas mass may be a good mass proxy regardless of the cluster dynamical state. To understand the origin of the systematics of the H.E. mass, we investigated 4 nearby clusters, for which the substructure is quantified by the radial fluctuations in the spectrally measured 2-D maps by a cumulative/differential scatter profile relative to the mean profile within/at a given radius. The amplitude of and the discontinuity in the scatter complements 2-D substructure diagnostics, e.g. indicating the most disturbed radial range. There is a tantalizing link between the substructure identified using the scatter of the entropy and pressure fluctuations and the deviation of the H.E. mass relative to the expected mass based on the representative scaling relation, e.g., M-Mgas, particularly at r500-the radius within which the over-density, Δ, is 500 with respect to the critical density. This indicates that at larger radii, the systematic error of the H.E. mass may well be caused by substructure.

  3. Zero point energy of polyhedral water clusters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anick, David J

    2005-06-30

    Polyhedral water clusters (PWCs) are cage-like (H2O)n clusters where every O participates in exactly three H bonds. For a database of 83 PWCs, 8 zero point energy (ZPE) was calculated at the B3LYP/6-311++G** level. ZPE correlates negatively with electronic energy (E0): each increase of 1 kcal/mol in E0 corresponds to a decrease of about 0.11 kcal/mol in ZPE. For each n, a set of four connectivity parameters accounts for 98% or more of the variance in ZPE. Linear regression of ZPE against n and this set gives an RMS error of 0.13 kcal/mol. The contributions to ZPE from stretch modes only (ZPE(S)) and from torsional modes only (ZPE(T)) also correlate strongly with E0 and with each other.

  4. Transport, dissociation and rotation of small self-interstitial atom clusters in tungsten

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhou, W.H.; Zhang, C.G.; Li, Y.G.; Zeng, Z.

    2014-01-01

    Numerical calculations have been performed to study the thermal motion of self-interstitial atom (SIA) clusters in tungsten (W). Molecular dynamics simulations show that SIA clusters exhibit a fast one-dimensional (1D) motion along the close packed 〈1 1 1〉 direction accompanied by a significant mass transport in this direction. A low frequency vibration mode is identified and considered to assist the motion of SIAs. The migration energy of SIA clusters are weakly dependent on their size in the average value of 0.019 eV, which is due to the strong interaction between SIAs revealed by calculating the potential energy curve of artificially moving the SIAs along 〈1 1 1〉 direction as well as nudged elastic band (NEB) method. The rotation process of SIA cluster is studied by activation–relaxation technique and the results show that SIA cluster presents complex rotation process. Our results on the motion SIA cluster may provide updated understanding on the performance decay of materials related to SIA defects

  5. Effects of solvation shells and cluster size on the reaction of aluminum clusters with water

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Weiwei Mou

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Reaction of aluminum clusters, Aln (n = 16, 17 and 18, with liquid water is investigated using quantum molecular dynamics simulations, which show rapid production of hydrogen molecules assisted by proton transfer along a chain of hydrogen bonds (H-bonds between water molecules, i.e. Grotthuss mechanism. The simulation results provide answers to two unsolved questions: (1 What is the role of a solvation shell formed by non-reacting H-bonds surrounding the H-bond chain; and (2 whether the high size-selectivity observed in gas-phase Aln-water reaction persists in liquid phase? First, the solvation shell is found to play a crucial role in facilitating proton transfer and hence H2 production. Namely, it greatly modifies the energy barrier, generally to much lower values (< 0.1 eV. Second, we find that H2 production by Aln in liquid water does not depend strongly on the cluster size, in contrast to the existence of magic numbers in gas-phase reaction. This paper elucidates atomistic mechanisms underlying these observations.

  6. Big Data GPU-Driven Parallel Processing Spatial and Spatio-Temporal Clustering Algorithms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Konstantaras, Antonios; Skounakis, Emmanouil; Kilty, James-Alexander; Frantzeskakis, Theofanis; Maravelakis, Emmanuel

    2016-04-01

    Diamantaras, K.: 'Programming and architecture of parallel processing systems', 1st Edition, Eds. Kleidarithmos, 2011 [4] NVIDIA.: 'NVidia CUDA C Programming Guide', version 5.0, NVidia (reference book) [5] Konstantaras, A.: 'Classification of Distinct Seismic Regions and Regional Temporal Modelling of Seismicity in the Vicinity of the Hellenic Seismic Arc', IEEE Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing, vol. 6 (4), pp. 1857-1863, 2013 [6] Konstantaras, A. Varley, M.R.,. Valianatos, F., Collins, G. and Holifield, P.: 'Recognition of electric earthquake precursors using neuro-fuzzy models: methodology and simulation results', Proc. IASTED International Conference on Signal Processing Pattern Recognition and Applications (SPPRA 2002), Crete, Greece, 2002, pp 303-308, 2002 [7] Konstantaras, A., Katsifarakis, E., Maravelakis, E., Skounakis, E., Kokkinos, E. and Karapidakis, E.: 'Intelligent Spatial-Clustering of Seismicity in the Vicinity of the Hellenic Seismic Arc', Earth Science Research, vol. 1 (2), pp. 1-10, 2012 [8] Georgoulas, G., Konstantaras, A., Katsifarakis, E., Stylios, C.D., Maravelakis, E. and Vachtsevanos, G.: '"Seismic-Mass" Density-based Algorithm for Spatio-Temporal Clustering', Expert Systems with Applications, vol. 40 (10), pp. 4183-4189, 2013 [9] Konstantaras, A. J.: 'Expert knowledge-based algorithm for the dynamic discrimination of interactive natural clusters', Earth Science Informatics, 2015 (In Press, see: www.scopus.com) [10] Drakatos, G. and Latoussakis, J.: 'A catalog of aftershock sequences in Greece (1971-1997): Their spatial and temporal characteristics', Journal of Seismology, vol. 5, pp. 137-145, 2001

  7. BACE1 Deficiency Causes Abnormal Neuronal Clustering in the Dentate Gyrus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hailong Hou

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available BACE1 is validated as Alzheimer's β-secretase and a therapeutic target for Alzheimer's disease. In examining BACE1-null mice, we discovered that BACE1 deficiency develops abnormal clusters of immature neurons, forming doublecortin-positive neuroblasts, in the developing dentate gyrus, mainly in the subpial zone (SPZ. Such clusters were rarely observed in wild-type SPZ and not reported in other mouse models. To understand their origins and fates, we examined how neuroblasts in BACE1-null SPZ mature and migrate during early postnatal development. We show that such neuroblasts are destined to form Prox1-positive granule cells in the dentate granule cell layer, and mainly mature to form excitatory neurons, but not inhibitory neurons. Mechanistically, higher levels of reelin potentially contribute to abnormal neurogenesis and timely migration in BACE1-null SPZ. Altogether, we demonstrate that BACE1 is a critical regulator in forming the dentate granule cell layer through timely maturation and migration of SPZ neuroblasts.

  8. The merging cluster Abell 1758: an optical and dynamical view

    Science.gov (United States)

    Monteiro-Oliveira, Rogerio; Serra Cypriano, Eduardo; Machado, Rubens; Lima Neto, Gastao B.

    2015-08-01

    The galaxy cluster Abell 1758-North (z=0.28) is a binary system composed by the sub-structures NW and NE. This is supposed to be a post-merging cluster due to observed detachment between the NE BCG and the respective X-ray emitting hot gas clump in a scenario very close to the famous Bullet Cluster. On the other hand, the projected position of the NW BCG coincides with the local hot gas peak. This system was been targeted previously by several studies, using multiple wavelengths and techniques, but there is still no clear picture of the scenario that could have caused this unusual configuration. To help solving this complex puzzle we added some pieces: firstly, we have used deep B, RC and z' Subaru images to perform both weak lensing shear and magnification analysis of A1758 (including here the South component that is not in interaction with A1758-North) modeling each sub-clump as an NFW profile in order to constrain masses and its center positions through MCMC methods; the second piece is the dynamical analysis using radial velocities available in the literature (143) plus new Gemini-GMOS/N measurements (68 new redshifts).From weak lensing we found that independent shear and magnification mass determinations are in excellent agreement between them and combining both we could reduce mass error bar by ~30% compared to shear alone. By combining this two weak-lensing probes we found that the position of both Northern BCGs are consistent with the masses centers within 2σ and and the NE hot gas peak to be offseted of the respective mass peak (M200=5.5 X 1014 M⊙) with very high significance. The most massive structure is NW (M200=7.95 X 1014 M⊙ ) where we observed no detachment between gas, DM and BCG.We have calculated a low line-of-sight velocity difference (plane of collision and the sky (<40 degrees). Dynamic modeling shows that the point of maximum approximation taken place 0.55 Gyr ago, pointing Abell 1758-North as a young merger cluster.

  9. IntroductionThe Cluster mission

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Fehringer

    Full Text Available The Cluster mission, ESA’s first cornerstone project, together with the SOHO mission, dating back to the first proposals in 1982, was finally launched in the summer of 2000. On 16 July and 9 August, respectively, two Russian Soyuz rockets blasted off from the Russian cosmodrome in Baikonour to deliver two Cluster spacecraft, each into their proper orbit. By the end of August 2000, the four Cluster satellites had reached their final tetrahedral constellation. The commissioning of 44 instruments, both individually and as an ensemble of complementary tools, was completed five months later to ensure the optimal use of their combined observational potential. On 1 February 2001, the mission was declared operational. The main goal of the Cluster mission is to study the small-scale plasma structures in three dimensions in key plasma regions, such as the solar wind, bow shock, magnetopause, polar cusps, magnetotail and the auroral zones. With its unique capabilities of three-dimensional spatial resolution, Cluster plays a major role in the International Solar Terrestrial Program (ISTP, where Cluster and the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO are the European contributions. Cluster’s payload consists of state-of-the-art plasma instrumentation to measure electric and magnetic fields from the quasi-static up to high frequencies, and electron and ion distribution functions from energies of nearly 0 eV to a few MeV. The science operations are coordinated by the Joint Science Operations Centre (JSOC, at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (UK, and implemented by the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC, in Darmstadt, Germany. A network of eight national data centres has been set up for raw data processing, for the production of physical parameters, and their distribution to end users all over the world. The latest information on the Cluster mission can be found at http://sci.esa.int/cluster/.

  10. IntroductionThe Cluster mission

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    C. P. Escoubet

    2001-09-01

    Full Text Available The Cluster mission, ESA’s first cornerstone project, together with the SOHO mission, dating back to the first proposals in 1982, was finally launched in the summer of 2000. On 16 July and 9 August, respectively, two Russian Soyuz rockets blasted off from the Russian cosmodrome in Baikonour to deliver two Cluster spacecraft, each into their proper orbit. By the end of August 2000, the four Cluster satellites had reached their final tetrahedral constellation. The commissioning of 44 instruments, both individually and as an ensemble of complementary tools, was completed five months later to ensure the optimal use of their combined observational potential. On 1 February 2001, the mission was declared operational. The main goal of the Cluster mission is to study the small-scale plasma structures in three dimensions in key plasma regions, such as the solar wind, bow shock, magnetopause, polar cusps, magnetotail and the auroral zones. With its unique capabilities of three-dimensional spatial resolution, Cluster plays a major role in the International Solar Terrestrial Program (ISTP, where Cluster and the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO are the European contributions. Cluster’s payload consists of state-of-the-art plasma instrumentation to measure electric and magnetic fields from the quasi-static up to high frequencies, and electron and ion distribution functions from energies of nearly 0 eV to a few MeV. The science operations are coordinated by the Joint Science Operations Centre (JSOC, at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (UK, and implemented by the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC, in Darmstadt, Germany. A network of eight national data centres has been set up for raw data processing, for the production of physical parameters, and their distribution to end users all over the world. The latest information on the Cluster mission can be found at http://sci.esa.int/cluster/.

  11. Simulation of white light generation and near light bullets using a novel numerical technique

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zia, Haider

    2018-01-01

    An accurate and efficient simulation has been devised, employing a new numerical technique to simulate the derivative generalised non-linear Schrödinger equation in all three spatial dimensions and time. The simulation models all pertinent effects such as self-steepening and plasma for the non-linear propagation of ultrafast optical radiation in bulk material. Simulation results are compared to published experimental spectral data of an example ytterbium aluminum garnet system at 3.1 μm radiation and fits to within a factor of 5. The simulation shows that there is a stability point near the end of the 2 mm crystal where a quasi-light bullet (spatial temporal soliton) is present. Within this region, the pulse is collimated at a reduced diameter (factor of ∼2) and there exists a near temporal soliton at the spatial center. The temporal intensity within this stable region is compressed by a factor of ∼4 compared to the input. This study shows that the simulation highlights new physical phenomena based on the interplay of various linear, non-linear and plasma effects that go beyond the experiment and is thus integral to achieving accurate designs of white light generation systems for optical applications. An adaptive error reduction algorithm tailor made for this simulation will also be presented in appendix.

  12. Single-cluster dynamics for the random-cluster model

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Deng, Y.; Qian, X.; Blöte, H.W.J.

    2009-01-01

    We formulate a single-cluster Monte Carlo algorithm for the simulation of the random-cluster model. This algorithm is a generalization of the Wolff single-cluster method for the q-state Potts model to noninteger values q>1. Its results for static quantities are in a satisfactory agreement with those

  13. The effectiveness of a clinically integrated e-learning course in evidence-based medicine: A cluster randomised controlled trial

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kulier, Regina; Coppus, Sjors F. P. J.; Zamora, Javier; Hadley, Julie; Malick, Sadia; Das, Kausik; Weinbrenner, Susanne; Meyerrose, Berrit; Decsi, Tamas; Horvath, Andrea R.; Nagy, Eva; Emparanza, Jose I.; Arvanitis, Theodoros N.; Burls, Amanda; Cabello, Juan B.; Kaczor, Marcin; Zanrei, Gianni; Pierer, Karen; Stawiarz, Katarzyna; Kunz, Regina; Mol, Ben W. J.; Khan, Khalid S.

    2009-01-01

    ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: To evaluate the educational effects of a clinically integrated e-learning course for teaching basic evidence-based medicine (EBM) among postgraduates compared to a traditional lecture-based course of equivalent content. METHODS: We conducted a cluster randomised controlled

  14. Parameterization and Observability Analysis of Scalable Battery Clusters for Onboard Thermal Management Paramétrage et analyse d’observabilité de clusters de batteries de taille variable pour une gestion thermique embarquée

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lin Xinfan

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available Although the battery surface temperature is commonly measured, the core temperature of a cell may be much higher hence more critical than the surface temperature. The core temperature of a battery, though usually unmeasured in commercial applications, can be estimated by an observer, based on a lumped-parameter battery thermal model and the measurement of the current and the surface temperature. Even with a closed loop observer based on the measured surface temperature, the accuracy of the core temperature estimation depends on the model parameters. For such purpose, an online parameterization methodology and an adaptive observer are designed for a cylindrical battery. The single cell thermal model is then scaled up to create a battery cluster model to investigate the temperature pattern of the cluster. The modeled thermal interconnections between cells include cell to cell heat conduction and convection to the surrounding coolant flow. An observability analysis is performed on the cluster before designing a closed loop observer for the pack. Based on the analysis, guidelines for determining the minimum number of required sensors and their exact locations are derived that guarantee the observability of all temperature states. Bien que la température de surface d’une batterie soit généralement mesurée, la température interne d’une cellule peut être beaucoup plus élevée donc plus critique que la température de surface. La température interne d’une batterie, pourtant normalement non mesurée dans les applications commerciales, peut être évaluée par un observateur, sur la base d’un modèle thermique de batterie à constantes localisées et à partir de la mesure du courant et de la température de surface. Même avec un observateur en boucle fermée basé sur la température de surface mesurée, la précision de l’estimation de la température interne dépend des constantes du modèle. Dans cette optique, une méthodologie de

  15. Molecular Gas Reservoirs in Cluster Galaxies at z = 1.46

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hayashi, Masao; Tadaki, Ken-ichi; Kodama, Tadayuki; Kohno, Kotaro; Yamaguchi, Yuki; Hatsukade, Bunyo; Koyama, Yusei; Shimakawa, Rhythm; Tamura, Yoichi; Suzuki, Tomoko L.

    2018-04-01

    We present molecular gas reservoirs of 18 galaxies associated with the XMMXCS J2215.9–1738 cluster at z = 1.46. From Band 7 and Band 3 data of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, we detect dust continuum emission at 870 μm and the CO J = 2–1 emission line from 8 and 17 member galaxies, respectively, within a clustercentric radius of R 200. The molecular gas masses derived from the CO and/or dust continuum luminosities show that the fraction of molecular gas mass and the depletion timescale for the cluster galaxies are larger than expected from the scaling relations of molecular gas on stellar mass and offset from the main sequence of star-forming galaxies in general fields. The galaxies closer to the cluster center in terms of both projected position and accretion phase seem to show a larger deviation from the scaling relations. We speculate that the environment of the galaxy cluster helps feed the gas through inflow to the member galaxies and reduce the efficiency of star formation. The stacked Band 3 spectrum of 12 quiescent galaxies with M stellar ∼ 1011 M ⊙ within 0.5R 200 shows no detection of a CO emission line, giving the upper limit of molecular gas mass and molecular gas fraction to be ≲1010 M ⊙ and ≲10%, respectively. Therefore, the massive galaxies in the cluster core quench the star formation activity while consuming most of the gas reservoirs.

  16. Mixed clusters from the coexpansion of C2F6 and n2 in a pulsed, supersonic expansion cluster ion source and beam deflection time-of-flight mass spectrometer: A first application

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thompson, Steven D.

    The following topics are discussed: (1) cluster ion genesis; (2) cluster ion detection; (3) Ion source; (4) pulse valve; (5) e-gun; (6) Ion optics; (7) a first order model; and (8) a modified Bakker's model.

  17. THE MULTI-EPOCH NEARBY CLUSTER SURVEY: TYPE Ia SUPERNOVA RATE MEASUREMENT IN z ∼ 0.1 CLUSTERS AND THE LATE-TIME DELAY TIME DISTRIBUTION

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sand, David J.; Graham, Melissa L.; Bildfell, Chris; Pritchet, Chris; Zaritsky, Dennis; Just, Dennis W.; Herbert-Fort, Stéphane; Hoekstra, Henk; Sivanandam, Suresh; Foley, Ryan J.; Mahdavi, Andisheh

    2012-01-01

    We describe the Multi-Epoch Nearby Cluster Survey, designed to measure the cluster Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) rate in a sample of 57 X-ray selected galaxy clusters, with redshifts of 0.05 200 (1 Mpc) of 0.042 +0.012 –0.010 +0.010 –0.008 SNuM (0.049 +0.016 –0.014 +0.005 –0.004 SNuM) and an SN Ia rate within red-sequence galaxies of 0.041 +0.015 –0.015 +0.005 –0.010 SNuM (0.041 +0.019 –0.015 +0.005 –0.004 SNuM). The red-sequence SN Ia rate is consistent with published rates in early-type/elliptical galaxies in the 'field'. Using our red-sequence SN Ia rate, and other cluster SN measurements in early-type galaxies up to z ∼ 1, we derive the late-time (>2 Gyr) delay time distribution (DTD) of SN Ia assuming a cluster early-type galaxy star formation epoch of z f = 3. Assuming a power-law form for the DTD, Ψ(t)∝t s , we find s = –1.62 ± 0.54. This result is consistent with predictions for the double degenerate SN Ia progenitor scenario (s ∼ –1) and is also in line with recent calculations for the double detonation explosion mechanism (s ∼ –2). The most recent calculations of the single degenerate scenario DTD predicts an order-of-magnitude drop-off in SN Ia rate ∼6-7 Gyr after stellar formation, and the observed cluster rates cannot rule this out.

  18. VNI version 4.1. Simulation of high-energy particle collisions in QCD: Space-time evolution of e+e-... A + B collisions with parton-cascades, cluster-hadronization, final-state hadron cascades

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Geiger, K.; Longacre, R.

    1999-01-01

    VNI is a general-purpose Monte-Carlo event-generator, which includes the simulation of lepton-lepton, lepton-hadron, lepton-nucleus, hadron-hadron, hadron-nucleus, and nucleus-nucleus collisions. It uses the real-time evolution of parton cascades in conjunction with a self-consistent hadronization scheme, as well as the development of hadron cascades after hadronization. The causal evolution from a specific initial state (determined by the colliding beam particles) is followed by the time-development of the phase-space densities of partons, pre-hadronic parton clusters, and final-state hadrons, in position-space, momentum-space and color-space. The parton-evolution is described in terms of a space-time generalization of the familiar momentum-space description of multiple (semi)hard interactions in QCD, involving 2 → 2 parton collisions, 2 → 1 parton fusion processes, and 1 → 2 radiation processes. The formation of color-singlet pre-hadronic clusters and their decays into hadrons, on the other hand, is treated by using a spatial criterion motivated by confinement and a non-perturbative model for hadronization. Finally, the cascading of produced prehadronic clusters and of hadrons includes a multitude of 2 → n processes, and is modeled in parallel to the parton cascade description. This paper gives a brief review of the physics underlying VNI, as well as a detailed description of the program itself. The latter program description emphasizes easy-to-use pragmatism and explains how to use the program (including simple examples), annotates input and control parameters, and discusses output data provided by it

  19. Scape goats, silver bullets, and other pitfalls in the path to sustainability

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. G. Webster

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper draws from 'The Lathe of Heaven' by Ursula Le Guin to highlight some of the most likely pitfalls on the political road to a sustainable planet. Through the literary device of dreams that can change the world, Le Guin explores how the individual’s egoistic desire to save humanity can be twisted by the limitations of our psyche and our society, turning an already uncomfortable future Earth into a devastated planet. It is a stinging critique of answers handed down from above, and a call to action for those of us who just get by here below. Her story warns of the ancient “road to hell”, paved and trodden by would be saviors with the best intentions but also points to the license that public apathy provides to the powerful when the costs of environmental harm are borne by the powerless. These disconnects, combined with cycles of rationalization, silver bullet mentalities, and the tendency to scapegoat others for negative side effects, can all derail sustainability transitions. 'Lathe' provides an allegorical assessment of this process, but much more study is needed to fully understand and regulate the resulting governance treadmill.

  20. E2F1-mediated human POMC expression in ectopic Cushing's syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Araki, Takako; Liu, Ning-Ai; Tone, Yukiko; Cuevas-Ramos, Daniel; Heltsley, Roy; Tone, Masahide; Melmed, Shlomo

    2016-11-01

    Cushing's syndrome is caused by excessive adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) secretion derived from pituitary corticotroph tumors (Cushing disease) or from non-pituitary tumors (ectopic Cushing's syndrome). Hypercortisolemic features of ectopic Cushing's syndrome are severe, and no definitive treatment for paraneoplastic ACTH excess is available. We aimed to identify subcellular therapeutic targets by elucidating transcriptional regulation of the human ACTH precursor POMC (proopiomelanocortin) and ACTH production in non-pituitary tumor cells and in cell lines derived from patients with ectopic Cushing's syndrome. We show that ectopic hPOMC transcription proceeds independently of pituitary-specific Tpit/Pitx1 and demonstrate a novel E2F1-mediated transcriptional mechanism regulating hPOMC We identify an E2F1 cluster binding to the proximal hPOMC promoter region (-42 to +68), with DNA-binding activity determined by the phosphorylation at Ser-337. hPOMC mRNA expression in cancer cells was upregulated (up to 40-fold) by the co-expression of E2F1 and its heterodimer partner DP1. Direct and indirect inhibitors of E2F1 activity suppressed hPOMC gene expression and ACTH by modifying E2F1 DNA-binding activity in ectopic Cushing's cell lines and primary tumor cells, and also suppressed paraneoplastic ACTH and cortisol levels in xenografted mice. E2F1-mediated hPOMC transcription is a potential target for suppressing ACTH production in ectopic Cushing's syndrome. © 2016 Society for Endocrinology.

  1. Hydrogen production by photosynthetic water splitting

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Greenbaum, E.; Lee, J.W.; Tevault, C.V. [Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)

    1996-10-01

    Contrary to the prediction of the {open_quotes}Z-scheme{close_quotes} model of photosynthesis, experiments demonstrated that mutants of Chlamydomonas containing Photosystem II (PSII) but lacking Photosystem I (PSI), can grow photoautotrophically with O{sub 2} evolution and using atmospheric CO{sub 2} as the sole carbon source. Autotrophic photosynthesis by PSI-deficient mutants was stable both under anaerobic conditions and in air (21% O{sub 2}) at an actinic intensity of 200 {mu}E/m{sup -2}{sup {sm_bullet}}s. This {open_quotes}PSII photosynthesis,{close_quotes} sufficient to support cell development and mobility, may also occur in wild-type green algae and higher plants. The mutants can survive under 2000 {mu}E{sup {sm_bullet}}m{sup -2}{sup {sm_bullet}}s{sup -1} with air, although they have less resistance to photoinhibition.

  2. Probing the nature of Dark Matter with the SKA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colafrancesco, S.; Regis, M.; Marchegiani, P.; Beck, G.; Beck, R.; Zechlin, H.; Lobanov, A.; Horns, D.

    2015-04-01

    Dark Matter (DM) is a fundamental ingredient of our Universe and of structure formation, and yet its nature is elusive to astrophysical probes. Information on the nature and physical properties of the WIMP (neutralino) DM (the leading candidate for a cosmologically relevant DM) can be obtained by studying the astrophysical signals of their annihilation/decay. Among the various e.m. signals, secondary electrons produced by neutralino annihilation generate synchrotron emission in the magnetized atmosphere of galaxy clusters and galaxies which could be observed as a diffuse radio emission (halo or haze) centered on the DM halo. A deep search for DM radio emission with SKA in local dwarf galaxies, galaxy regions with low star formation and galaxy clusters (with offset DM-baryonic distribution, like e.g. the Bullet cluster) can be very effective in constraining the neutralino mass, composition and annihilation cross-section. For the case of a dwarf galaxy, like e.g. Draco, the constraints on the DM annihilation cross-section obtainable with SKA1-MID will be at least a factor $\\sim 10^3$ more stringent than the limits obtained by Fermi-LAT in the $\\gamma$-rays. These limits scale with the value of the B field, and the SKA will have the capability to determine simultaneously both the magnetic field in the DM-dominated structures and the DM particle properties. The optimal frequency band for detecting the DM-induced radio emission is around $\\sim 1$ GHz, with the SKA1-MID Band 1 and 4 important to probe the synchrotron spectral curvature at low-$\

  3. Galaxy evolution in clusters since z=1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aragón-Salamanca, A.

    2011-11-01

    It is now 30 years since Alan Dressler published his seminal paper onthe morphology-density relation. Although there is still much to learnon the effect of the environment on galaxy evolution, extensive progress has been made since then both observationally and theoretically.Galaxy clusters provide some of the most extreme environments in which galaxies evolve, making them excellent laboratories to study the age old question of "nature'' vs. "nurture'' in galaxy evolution. Here I review some of the key observational results obtained during the last decade on the evolution of the morphology, structure, dynamics, star-formation history and stellar populations of cluster galaxies since the time when the universe was half its present age.Many of the results presented here have been obtainedwithin the ESO Distant Cluster Survey (EDisCS) and Space Telescope A901/02 Galaxy Evolution Survey (STAGES) collaborations.

  4. Synthesis and Characterization of Rh—Co Butterfly Clusters Capped by Functionally Substituted 1—Alkynes

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    ZHUBao-Hua; SUNJie; 等

    2003-01-01

    By the reactions of [Rh2Co2(CO2)12]1 with functionaly substituted alkyne ligands HC≡CR 2(R=FeCp2) and 3(R=2-OH-C6H4COOCH2),respectively in n-hexane at room temperature,two new cluster derivatives [Rh2Co2(CO)6(μ-CO)4(μ4,η2-HC≡CR)] 4(R=FeCp2) and 5 (R=2-OH-C6H4COOCH2) were obtained respectively,The alkyne was inserted into the Co-Co bond of cluster 1 to give two butterfly clusters.Cluster 4 has been determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction,Crystallographic data:C22H10Co2FeO18Rh2,Mr=813.83,orthorhombic ,space group P212121,a=11.53187(7),b=12.6572(7),c=17.018(1)°↑A,V=2483.9(3)°↑A3,Z=4,Dc=2.176 g/cm3,F(000)=1568,μ=3.233mm-1,the final R=0.0366 and wR=0.0899 for 5367 observed reflections with I>2σ(I).The two clusters have also been characterized by elemental analysis ,IR and 1H-NMR spectroscopy.

  5. PCA based clustering for brain tumor segmentation of T1w MRI images.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaya, Irem Ersöz; Pehlivanlı, Ayça Çakmak; Sekizkardeş, Emine Gezmez; Ibrikci, Turgay

    2017-03-01

    Medical images are huge collections of information that are difficult to store and process consuming extensive computing time. Therefore, the reduction techniques are commonly used as a data pre-processing step to make the image data less complex so that a high-dimensional data can be identified by an appropriate low-dimensional representation. PCA is one of the most popular multivariate methods for data reduction. This paper is focused on T1-weighted MRI images clustering for brain tumor segmentation with dimension reduction by different common Principle Component Analysis (PCA) algorithms. Our primary aim is to present a comparison between different variations of PCA algorithms on MRIs for two cluster methods. Five most common PCA algorithms; namely the conventional PCA, Probabilistic Principal Component Analysis (PPCA), Expectation Maximization Based Principal Component Analysis (EM-PCA), Generalize Hebbian Algorithm (GHA), and Adaptive Principal Component Extraction (APEX) were applied to reduce dimensionality in advance of two clustering algorithms, K-Means and Fuzzy C-Means. In the study, the T1-weighted MRI images of the human brain with brain tumor were used for clustering. In addition to the original size of 512 lines and 512 pixels per line, three more different sizes, 256 × 256, 128 × 128 and 64 × 64, were included in the study to examine their effect on the methods. The obtained results were compared in terms of both the reconstruction errors and the Euclidean distance errors among the clustered images containing the same number of principle components. According to the findings, the PPCA obtained the best results among all others. Furthermore, the EM-PCA and the PPCA assisted K-Means algorithm to accomplish the best clustering performance in the majority as well as achieving significant results with both clustering algorithms for all size of T1w MRI images. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Genetic variations and haplotype diversity of the UGT1 gene cluster in the Chinese population.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jing Yang

    Full Text Available Vertebrates require tremendous molecular diversity to defend against numerous small hydrophobic chemicals. UDP-glucuronosyltransferases (UGTs are a large family of detoxification enzymes that glucuronidate xenobiotics and endobiotics, facilitating their excretion from the body. The UGT1 gene cluster contains a tandem array of variable first exons, each preceded by a specific promoter, and a common set of downstream constant exons, similar to the genomic organization of the protocadherin (Pcdh, immunoglobulin, and T-cell receptor gene clusters. To assist pharmacogenomics studies in Chinese, we sequenced nine first exons, promoter and intronic regions, and five common exons of the UGT1 gene cluster in a population sample of 253 unrelated Chinese individuals. We identified 101 polymorphisms and found 15 novel SNPs. We then computed allele frequencies for each polymorphism and reconstructed their linkage disequilibrium (LD map. The UGT1 cluster can be divided into five linkage blocks: Block 9 (UGT1A9, Block 9/7/6 (UGT1A9, UGT1A7, and UGT1A6, Block 5 (UGT1A5, Block 4/3 (UGT1A4 and UGT1A3, and Block 3' UTR. Furthermore, we inferred haplotypes and selected their tagSNPs. Finally, comparing our data with those of three other populations of the HapMap project revealed ethnic specificity of the UGT1 genetic diversity in Chinese. These findings have important implications for future molecular genetic studies of the UGT1 gene cluster as well as for personalized medical therapies in Chinese.

  7. Applications of Cluster Analysis to the Creation of Perfectionism Profiles: A Comparison of two Clustering Approaches

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jocelyn H Bolin

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Although traditional clustering methods (e.g., K-means have been shown to be useful in the social sciences it is often difficult for such methods to handle situations where clusters in the population overlap or are ambiguous. Fuzzy clustering, a method already recognized in many disciplines, provides a more flexible alternative to these traditional clustering methods. Fuzzy clustering differs from other traditional clustering methods in that it allows for a case to belong to multiple clusters simultaneously. Unfortunately, fuzzy clustering techniques remain relatively unused in the social and behavioral sciences. The purpose of this paper is to introduce fuzzy clustering to these audiences who are currently relatively unfamiliar with the technique. In order to demonstrate the advantages associated with this method, cluster solutions of a common perfectionism measure were created using both fuzzy clustering and K-means clustering, and the results compared. Results of these analyses reveal that different cluster solutions are found by the two methods, and the similarity between the different clustering solutions depends on the amount of cluster overlap allowed for in fuzzy clustering.

  8. Applications of cluster analysis to the creation of perfectionism profiles: a comparison of two clustering approaches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bolin, Jocelyn H; Edwards, Julianne M; Finch, W Holmes; Cassady, Jerrell C

    2014-01-01

    Although traditional clustering methods (e.g., K-means) have been shown to be useful in the social sciences it is often difficult for such methods to handle situations where clusters in the population overlap or are ambiguous. Fuzzy clustering, a method already recognized in many disciplines, provides a more flexible alternative to these traditional clustering methods. Fuzzy clustering differs from other traditional clustering methods in that it allows for a case to belong to multiple clusters simultaneously. Unfortunately, fuzzy clustering techniques remain relatively unused in the social and behavioral sciences. The purpose of this paper is to introduce fuzzy clustering to these audiences who are currently relatively unfamiliar with the technique. In order to demonstrate the advantages associated with this method, cluster solutions of a common perfectionism measure were created using both fuzzy clustering and K-means clustering, and the results compared. Results of these analyses reveal that different cluster solutions are found by the two methods, and the similarity between the different clustering solutions depends on the amount of cluster overlap allowed for in fuzzy clustering.

  9. Time-resolved explosion of intense-laser-heated clusters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, K Y; Alexeev, I; Parra, E; Milchberg, H M

    2003-01-17

    We investigate the femtosecond explosive dynamics of intense laser-heated argon clusters by measuring the cluster complex transient polarizability. The time evolution of the polarizability is characteristic of competition in the optical response between supercritical and subcritical density regions of the expanding cluster. The results are consistent with time-resolved Rayleigh scattering measurements, and bear out the predictions of a recent laser-cluster interaction model [H. M. Milchberg, S. J. McNaught, and E. Parra, Phys. Rev. E 64, 056402 (2001)

  10. Time-resolved explosion of intense-laser-heated clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, K.Y.; Alexeev, I.; Parra, E.; Milchberg, H.M.

    2003-01-01

    We investigate the femtosecond explosive dynamics of intense laser-heated argon clusters by measuring the cluster complex transient polarizability. The time evolution of the polarizability is characteristic of competition in the optical response between supercritical and subcritical density regions of the expanding cluster. The results are consistent with time-resolved Rayleigh scattering measurements, and bear out the predictions of a recent laser-cluster interaction model [H. M. Milchberg, S. J. McNaught, and E. Parra, Phys. Rev. E 64, 056402 (2001)

  11. The KMOS Cluster Survey (KCS). II. The Effect of Environment on the Structural Properties of Massive Cluster Galaxies at Redshift 1.39 < z < 1.61

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chan, Jeffrey C. C.; Beifiori, Alessandra; Saglia, Roberto P.; Mendel, J. Trevor; Stott, John P.; Bender, Ralf; Galametz, Audrey; Wilman, David J.; Cappellari, Michele; Davies, Roger L.; Houghton, Ryan C. W.; Prichard, Laura J.; Lewis, Ian J.; Sharples, Ray; Wegner, Michael

    2018-03-01

    We present results on the structural properties of massive passive galaxies in three clusters at 1.39 R-band sizes of these galaxies are a factor of ∼2–3 smaller than their local counterparts. The slopes of the relation between the stellar mass and the light-weighted size are consistent with recent studies in clusters and the field. Their mass-weighted sizes are smaller than the rest-frame R-band sizes, with an average mass-weighted to light-weighted size ratio that varies between ∼0.45 and 0.8 among the clusters. We find that the median light-weighted size of the passive galaxies in the two more evolved clusters is ∼24% larger than that for field galaxies, independent of the use of circularized effective radii or semimajor axes. These two clusters also show a smaller size ratio than the less evolved cluster, which we investigate using color gradients to probe the underlying {M}* /{L}{{{H}}160} gradients. The median color gradients are ∇z ‑ H ∼ ‑0.4 mag dex‑1, twice the local value. Using stellar populations models, these gradients are best reproduced by a combination of age and metallicity gradients. Our results favor the minor merger scenario as the dominant process responsible for the observed galaxy properties and the environmental differences at this redshift. The environmental differences support that clusters experience accelerated structural evolution compared to the field, likely via an epoch of enhanced minor merger activity during cluster assembly. Based on observations obtained at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) of the European Southern Observatory (ESO; program IDs: 092.A-0210; 093.A-0051; 094.A-0578; 095.A-0137(A); 096.A-0189(A); 097.A-0332(A)). This work is based on observations made with the NASA/ESA HST, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555. These observations are associated with program GO 13687, as well as with the CANDELS Multi-Cycle Treasury

  12. Business clustering along the M1-N3-N1 corridor between ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Xaven

    types and rates of business clustering along these sections of the corridor from ... today. The clustered, sometimes fragmented, rows of car dealerships, home fabrics .... that the enduring competitive advantages in a global economy are often ...

  13. Epidemiology Analysis of Streptococcus pyogenes in a Hospital in Southern Taiwan by Use of the Updated emm Cluster Typing System.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chiang-Ni, Chuan; Zheng, Po-Xing; Wang, Shu-Ying; Tsai, Pei-Jane; Chuang, Woei-Jer; Lin, Yee-Shin; Liu, Ching-Chuan; Wu, Jiunn-Jong

    2016-01-01

    emm typing is the most widely used molecular typing method for the human pathogen Streptococcus pyogenes (group A streptococcus [GAS]). emm typing is based on a small variable region of the emm gene; however, the emm cluster typing system defines GAS types according to the nearly complete sequence of the emm gene. Therefore, emm cluster typing is considered to provide more information regarding the functional and structural properties of M proteins in different emm types of GAS. In the present study, 677 isolates collected between 1994 and 2008 in a hospital in southern Taiwan were analyzed by the emm cluster typing system. emm clusters A-C4, E1, E6, and A-C3 were the most prevalent emm cluster types and accounted for 67.4% of total isolates. emm clusters A-C4 and E1 were associated with noninvasive diseases, whereas E6 was significantly associated with both invasive and noninvasive manifestations. In addition, emm clusters D4, E2, and E3 were significantly associated with invasive manifestations. Furthermore, we found that the functional properties of M protein, including low fibrinogen-binding and high IgG-binding activities, were correlated significantly with invasive manifestations. In summary, the present study provides updated epidemiological information on GAS emm cluster types in southern Taiwan. Copyright © 2015, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

  14. Irradiation effects of Ar cluster ion beams on Si substrates

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ishii, Masahiro; Sugahara, Gaku; Takaoka, G.H.; Yamada, Isao

    1993-01-01

    Gas-cluster ion beams can be applied to new surface modification techniques such as surface cleaning, low damage sputtering and shallow junction formation. The effects of energetic Ar cluster impacts on solid surface were studied for cluster energies of 10-30keV. Irradiation effects were studied by RBS. For Si(111) substrates, irradiated with Ar ≥500 clusters to a dose of 1x10 15 ion/cm 2 at acceleration voltage 15kV, 2x10 14 atoms/cm 2 implanted Ar atoms were detected. In this case, the energy per cluster atom was smaller than 30eV; at this energy, no significant implantation occurs in the case of monomer ions. Ar cluster implantation into Si substrates occurred due to the high energy density irradiation. (author)

  15. The Dimanganese(II) Site of Bacillus subtilis Class Ib Ribonucleotide Reductase

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Boal, Amie K.; Cotruvo, Jr., Joseph A.; Stubbe, JoAnne; Rosenzweig, Amy C. (MIT); (NWU)

    2014-10-02

    Class Ib ribonucleotide reductases (RNRs) use a dimanganese-tyrosyl radical cofactor, Mn{sub 2}{sup III}-Y{sm_bullet}, in their homodimeric NrdF ({beta}2) subunit to initiate reduction of ribonucleotides to deoxyribonucleotides. The structure of the Mn{sub 2}{sup II} form of NrdF is an important component in understanding O{sub 2}-mediated formation of the active metallocofactor, a subject of much interest because a unique flavodoxin, NrdI, is required for cofactor assembly. Biochemical studies and sequence alignments suggest that NrdF and NrdI proteins diverge into three phylogenetically distinct groups. The only crystal structure to date of a NrdF with a fully ordered and occupied dimanganese site is that of Escherichia coli Mn{sub 2}{sup II}-NrdF, prototypical of the enzymes from actinobacteria and proteobacteria. Here we report the 1.9 {angstrom} resolution crystal structure of Bacillus subtilis Mn{sub 2}{sup II}-NrdF, representative of the enzymes from a second group, from Bacillus and Staphylococcus. The structures of the metal clusters in the {beta}2 dimer are distinct from those observed in E. coli Mn{sub 2}{sup II}-NrdF. These differences illustrate the key role that solvent molecules and protein residues in the second coordination sphere of the Mn{sub 2}{sup II} cluster play in determining conformations of carboxylate residues at the metal sites and demonstrate that diverse coordination geometries are capable of serving as starting points for Mn{sub 2}{sup III}-Y{sm_bullet} cofactor assembly in class Ib RNRs.

  16. Clusters de religiosidade da juventude universitária portuguesa

    OpenAIRE

    Coutinho, José Pereira

    2014-01-01

    Este artigo apresenta resultados da tese de doutoramento do autor, baseados nas crenças e práticas religiosas e nas atitudes em relação ao casamento, vida e sexualidade. A amostra incluiu 500 estudantes universitários das universidades públicas de Lisboa. Aplicando análise de correspondências múltiplas e análise de clusters a estas crenças, práticas e atitudes, foram produzidos três clusters ou tipos de religiosidade: católicos nucleares, católicos intermédios e não católicos. Estes clusters ...

  17. X-ray Spectroscopy of the Virgo Cluster out to the Virial Radius

    OpenAIRE

    Urban, O.; Werner, N.; Simionescu, A.; Allen, S. W.; Böhringer, H.

    2011-01-01

    We present results from the analysis of a mosaic of thirteen XMM-Newton pointings covering the Virgo Cluster from its center northwards out to a radius r~1.2 Mpc (~4.5 degrees), reaching the virial radius and beyond. This is the first time that the properties of a modestly sized (M_vir~1.4e14 M_sun, kT~2.3 keV), dynamically young cluster have been studied out to the virial radius. The density profile of the cluster can be described by a surprisingly shallow power-law with index 1.21+/-0.12. I...

  18. Clustering of 1p-shell nuclei in the framework of the shell model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kwasniewicz, E.

    1991-01-01

    The two- and three-fragment clustering of the 1p-shell nuclei has been studied in the framework of the shell model. The absolute probabilities of the required types of clustering in a given nucleus have been obtained by projecting its realistic shell-model wavefunction onto the suitable subspace of the orthonormal, completely antisymmetric two- or three-cluster states. With the aid of these data the selectivity in population of final states produced in multinucleon transfer reactions has been discussed. This problem has also been considered in the approach where the exchange of nucleons between clusters has been neglected. This has enabled to demonstrate the role of the complete antisymmetrization in predicting the intensities of states populated in multinucleon transfer reactions. The compact theory of the multinucleon one- and two-cluster spectroscopic amplitudes has been formulated. The examples of studying the nuclear structure and reactions with the aid of these spectroscopic amplitudes have been presented. (author)

  19. Characterisation of the early stages of solute clustering in 1Ni-1.3Mn welds containing Cu

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hyde, J.M., E-mail: jonathan.hyde@materials.ox.ac.uk [Department of Materials, University of Oxford, Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PH (United Kingdom); National Nuclear Laboratory Ltd, B168 Harwell, Didcot, Oxon OX11 0QJ (United Kingdom); Burke, M.G. [Bechtel Bettis Inc., 814 Pittsburgh-McKeesport Blvd, West Mifflin, Pittsburgh 15122-0079 (United States); Boothby, R.M.; English, C.A. [National Nuclear Laboratory Ltd, B168 Harwell, Didcot, Oxon OX11 0QJ (United Kingdom)

    2009-04-15

    Microstructural characterisation of neutron irradiated low alloy steels is important for developing mechanistic understanding of irradiation embrittlement. This work is focused on the early stages of irradiation-induced clustering in a low Cu (0.03 wt%), high Ni ({approx}1 wt%) weld. The weld was irradiated at a very high dose rate and then examined by atom probe (energy-compensated position-sensitive atom probe (ECOPoSAP) and local electrode atom probe (LEAP)) with supporting microstructural information obtained by small angle neutron scattering (SANS) and positron annihilation (PALA). It was demonstrated that extreme care must be taken optimising parameters used to characterise the extent of clustering. This is particularly important during the early stages of irradiation-damage when the clusters are poorly defined and significant compositional variations are present in what is traditionally described as matrix. Analysis of the irradiated materials showed increasing clustering of Cu, Mn, Ni and Si with dose. In the low Cu steel the results showed that initially the irradiation damage results in clustering of Mn, Ni and Si, but at very high doses, at very high dose rates, redistribution of Si is significantly more advanced than that for Mn and Ni.

  20. A theoretical study of water equilibria: the cluster distribution versus temperature and pressure for (H2O)n, n = 1-60, and ice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lenz, Annika; Ojamäe, Lars

    2009-10-07

    The size distribution of water clusters at equilibrium is studied using quantum-chemical calculations in combination with statistical thermodynamics. The necessary energetic data is obtained by quantum-chemical B3LYP computations and through extrapolations from the B3LYP results for the larger clusters. Clusters with up to 60 molecules are included in the equilibrium computations. Populations of different cluster sizes are calculated using both an ideal gas model with noninteracting clusters and a model where a correction for the interaction energy is included analogous to the van der Waals law. In standard vapor the majority of the water molecules are monomers. For the ideal gas model at 1 atm large clusters [56-mer (0-120 K) and 28-mer (100-260 K)] dominate at low temperatures and separate to smaller clusters [21-22-mer (170-280 K) and 4-6-mer (270-320 K) and to monomers (300-350 K)] when the temperature is increased. At lower pressure the transition from clusters to monomers lies at lower temperatures and fewer cluster sizes are formed. The computed size distribution exhibits enhanced peaks for the clusters consisting of 21 and 28 water molecules; these sizes are for protonated water clusters often referred to as magic numbers. If cluster-cluster interactions are included in the model the transition from clusters to monomers is sharper (i.e., occurs over a smaller temperature interval) than when the ideal-gas model is used. Clusters with 20-22 molecules dominate in the liquid region. When a large icelike cluster is included it will dominate for temperatures up to 325 K for the noninteracting clusters model. Thermodynamic properties (C(p), DeltaH) were calculated with in general good agreement with experimental values for the solid and gas phase. A formula for the number of H-bond topologies in a given cluster structure is derived. For the 20-mer it is shown that the number of topologies contributes to making the population of dodecahedron-shaped cluster larger

  1. The transformation of Spirals into S0 galaxies in the cluster environment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    D'Onofrio, Mauro; Marziani, Paola; Buson, Lucio

    2015-01-01

    We discuss the observational evidences of the morphological transformation of Spirals into S0 galaxies in the cluster environment exploiting two big databases of galaxy clusters: WINGS (0.04 < z < 0.07) and EDisCS (0.4 < z < 0.8). The most important results are: (1) the average number of S0 galaxies in clusters is almost a factor of ~ 3 − 4 larger today than at redshift z ~ 1; (2) the fraction of S0's to Spirals increases on average by a factor ~ 2 every Gyr; (3) the average rate of transformation for Spirals (not considering the infall of new galaxies from the cosmic web) is: ~ 5 Sp → S0's per Gyr and ~ 2 Sp → E's per Gyr; (4) there are evidences that the interstellar gas of Spirals is stripped by an hot intergalactic medium; (5) there are also indirect hints that major/minor merging events have played a role in the transformation of Spiral galaxies. In particular, we show that: (1) the ratio between the number of S0's and Spirals (N S0 ∕N Sp ) in the WINGS clusters is correlated with their X-ray luminosity L X ; (2) that the brightest and massive S0's are always close to the cluster center; (3) that the mean Sérsic index of S0's is always larger than that of Spirals (and lower than E's) for galaxy stellar masses above 10 9.5 M ⊙ (4) that the number of E's in clusters cannot be constant; (5) that the largest difference between the mean mass of S0's and E's with respect to Spirals is observed in clusters with low velocity dispersion. Finally, by comparing the properties of the various morphological types for galaxies in clusters and in the field, we find that the most significant effect of the environment is the stripping of the outer galaxy regions, resulting in a systematic difference in effective radius and Sérsic index.

  2. Analysis of NFU-1 metallocofactor binding-site substitutions-impacts on iron-sulfur cluster coordination and protein structure and function.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wesley, Nathaniel A; Wachnowsky, Christine; Fidai, Insiya; Cowan, J A

    2017-11-01

    Iron-sulfur (Fe/S) clusters are ancient prosthetic groups found in numerous metalloproteins and are conserved across all kingdoms of life due to their diverse, yet essential functional roles. Genetic mutations to a specific subset of mitochondrial Fe/S cluster delivery proteins are broadly categorized as disease-related under multiple mitochondrial dysfunction syndrome (MMDS), with symptoms indicative of a general failure of the metabolic system. Multiple mitochondrial dysfunction syndrome 1 (MMDS1) arises as a result of the missense mutation in NFU1, an Fe/S cluster scaffold protein, which substitutes a glycine near the Fe/S cluster-binding pocket to a cysteine (p.Gly208Cys). This substitution has been shown to promote protein dimerization such that cluster delivery to NFU1 is blocked, preventing downstream cluster trafficking. However, the possibility of this additional cysteine, located adjacent to the cluster-binding site, serving as an Fe/S cluster ligand has not yet been explored. To fully understand the consequences of this Gly208Cys replacement, complementary substitutions at the Fe/S cluster-binding pocket for native and Gly208Cys NFU1 were made, along with six other variants. Herein, we report the results of an investigation on the effect of these substitutions on both cluster coordination and NFU1 structure and function. The data suggest that the G208C substitution does not contribute to cluster binding. Rather, replacement of the glycine at position 208 changes the oligomerization state as a result of global structural alterations that result in the downstream effects manifest as MMDS1, but does not perturb the coordination chemistry of the Fe-S cluster. © 2017 Federation of European Biochemical Societies.

  3. The panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury. V. Ages and masses of the year 1 stellar clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fouesneau, Morgan; Johnson, L. Clifton; Weisz, Daniel R.; Dalcanton, Julianne J.; Williams, Benjamin F.; Bell, Eric F.; Bianchi, Luciana; Caldwell, Nelson; Gouliermis, Dimitrios A.; Guhathakurta, Puragra; Kalirai, Jason; Larsen, Søren S.; Rix, Hans-Walter; Seth, Anil C.; Skillman, Evan D.

    2014-01-01

    We present ages and masses for 601 star clusters in M31 from the analysis of the six filter integrated light measurements from near-ultraviolet to near-infrared wavelengths, made as part of the Panchromatic Hubble Andromeda Treasury (PHAT). We derive the ages and masses using a probabilistic technique, which accounts for the effects of stochastic sampling of the stellar initial mass function. Tests on synthetic data show that this method, in conjunction with the exquisite sensitivity of the PHAT observations and their broad wavelength baseline, provides robust age and mass recovery for clusters ranging from ∼10 2 to 2 × 10 6 M ☉ . We find that the cluster age distribution is consistent with being uniform over the past 100 Myr, which suggests a weak effect of cluster disruption within M31. The age distribution of older (>100 Myr) clusters falls toward old ages, consistent with a power-law decline of index –1, likely from a combination of fading and disruption of the clusters. We find that the mass distribution of the whole sample can be well described by a single power law with a spectral index of –1.9 ± 0.1 over the range of 10 3 -3 × 10 5 M ☉ . However, if we subdivide the sample by galactocentric radius, we find that the age distributions remain unchanged. However, the mass spectral index varies significantly, showing best-fit values between –2.2 and –1.8, with the shallower slope in the highest star formation intensity regions. We explore the robustness of our study to potential systematics and conclude that the cluster mass function may vary with respect to environment.

  4. Dense Fe cluster-assembled films by energetic cluster deposition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peng, D.L.; Yamada, H.; Hihara, T.; Uchida, T.; Sumiyama, K.

    2004-01-01

    High-density Fe cluster-assembled films were produced at room temperature by an energetic cluster deposition. Though cluster-assemblies are usually sooty and porous, the present Fe cluster-assembled films are lustrous and dense, revealing a soft magnetic behavior. Size-monodispersed Fe clusters with the mean cluster size d=9 nm were synthesized using a plasma-gas-condensation technique. Ionized clusters are accelerated electrically and deposited onto the substrate together with neutral clusters from the same cluster source. Packing fraction and saturation magnetic flux density increase rapidly and magnetic coercivity decreases remarkably with increasing acceleration voltage. The Fe cluster-assembled film obtained at the acceleration voltage of -20 kV has a packing fraction of 0.86±0.03, saturation magnetic flux density of 1.78±0.05 Wb/m 2 , and coercivity value smaller than 80 A/m. The resistivity at room temperature is ten times larger than that of bulk Fe metal

  5. THE SLOAN BRIGHT ARCS SURVEY: TEN STRONG GRAVITATIONAL LENSING CLUSTERS AND EVIDENCE OF OVERCONCENTRATION

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wiesner, Matthew P. [Department of Physics, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115 (United States); Lin, Huan; Allam, Sahar S.; Annis, James; Buckley-Geer, Elizabeth J.; Diehl, H. Thomas; Kubik, Donna; Kubo, Jeffrey M.; Tucker, Douglas [Center for Particle Astrophysics, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, P.O. Box 500, Batavia, IL 60510 (United States)

    2012-12-10

    We describe 10 strong lensing galaxy clusters of redshift 0.26 {<=} z {<=} 0.56 that were found in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We present measurements of richness (N{sub 200}), mass (M{sub 200}), and velocity dispersion for the clusters. We find that in order to use the mass-richness relation from Johnston et al., which was established at mean redshift of 0.25, it is necessary to scale measured richness values up by 1.47. Using this scaling, we find richness values for these clusters to be in the range of 22 {<=} N{sub 200} {<=} 317 and mass values to be in the range of 1 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 14} h {sup -1} M{sub Sun} {<=} M{sub 200} {<=} 30 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 14} h {sup -1} M{sub Sun }. We also present measurements of Einstein radius, mass, and velocity dispersion for the lensing systems. The Einstein radii ({theta}{sub E}) are all relatively small, with 5.''4 {<=} {theta}{sub E} {<=} 13''. Finally, we consider if there is evidence that our clusters are more concentrated than {Lambda}CDM would predict. We find that six of our clusters do not show evidence of overconcentration, while four of our clusters do. We note a correlation between overconcentration and mass, as the four clusters showing evidence of overconcentration are all lower-mass clusters. For the four lowest mass clusters the average value of the concentration parameter c{sub 200} is 11.6, while for the six higher-mass clusters the average value of c{sub 200} is 4.4. {Lambda}CDM would place c{sub 200} between 3.4 and 5.7.

  6. Cluster-cluster aggregation of Ising dipolar particles under thermal noise

    KAUST Repository

    Suzuki, Masaru; Kun, Ferenc; Ito, Nobuyasu

    2009-01-01

    The cluster-cluster aggregation processes of Ising dipolar particles under thermal noise are investigated in the dilute condition. As the temperature increases, changes in the typical structures of clusters are observed from chainlike (D1

  7. Major cluster mergers and the location of the brightest cluster galaxy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Martel, Hugo; Robichaud, Fidèle; Barai, Paramita

    2014-01-01

    Using a large N-body cosmological simulation combined with a subgrid treatment of galaxy formation, merging, and tidal destruction, we study the formation and evolution of the galaxy and cluster population in a comoving volume (100 Mpc) 3 in a ΛCDM universe. At z = 0, our computational volume contains 1788 clusters with mass M cl > 1.1 × 10 12 M ☉ , including 18 massive clusters with M cl > 10 14 M ☉ . It also contains 1, 088, 797 galaxies with mass M gal ≥ 2 × 10 9 M ☉ and luminosity L > 9.5 × 10 5 L ☉ . For each cluster, we identified the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG). We then computed two separate statistics: the fraction f BNC of clusters in which the BCG is not the closest galaxy to the center of the cluster in projection, and the ratio Δv/σ, where Δv is the difference in radial velocity between the BCG and the whole cluster and σ is the radial velocity dispersion of the cluster. We found that f BNC increases from 0.05 for low-mass clusters (M cl ∼ 10 12 M ☉ ) to 0.5 for high-mass clusters (M cl > 10 14 M ☉ ) with very little dependence on cluster redshift. Most of this result turns out to be a projection effect and when we consider three-dimensional distances instead of projected distances, f BNC increases only to 0.2 at high-cluster mass. The values of Δv/σ vary from 0 to 1.8, with median values in the range 0.03-0.15 when considering all clusters, and 0.12-0.31 when considering only massive clusters. These results are consistent with previous observational studies and indicate that the central galaxy paradigm, which states that the BCG should be at rest at the center of the cluster, is usually valid, but exceptions are too common to be ignored. We built merger trees for the 18 most massive clusters in the simulation. Analysis of these trees reveal that 16 of these clusters have experienced 1 or several major or semi-major mergers in the past. These mergers leave each cluster in a non-equilibrium state, but eventually the cluster

  8. Clusters, groups, and filaments in the Chandra deep field-south up to redshift 1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dehghan, S.; Johnston-Hollitt, M.

    2014-01-01

    We present a comprehensive structure detection analysis of the 0.3 deg 2 area of the MUSYC-ACES field, which covers the Chandra Deep Field-South (CDFS). Using a density-based clustering algorithm on the MUSYC and ACES photometric and spectroscopic catalogs, we find 62 overdense regions up to redshifts of 1, including clusters, groups, and filaments. We also present the detection of a relatively small void of ∼10 Mpc 2 at z ∼ 0.53. All structures are confirmed using the DBSCAN method, including the detection of nine structures previously reported in the literature. We present a catalog of all structures present, including their central position, mean redshift, velocity dispersions, and classification based on their morphological and spectroscopic distributions. In particular, we find 13 galaxy clusters and 6 large groups/small clusters. Comparison of these massive structures with published XMM-Newton imaging (where available) shows that 80% of these structures are associated with diffuse, soft-band (0.4-1 keV) X-ray emission, including 90% of all objects classified as clusters. The presence of soft-band X-ray emission in these massive structures (M 200 ≥ 4.9 × 10 13 M ☉ ) provides a strong independent confirmation of our methodology and classification scheme. In the closest two clusters identified (z < 0.13) high-quality optical imaging from the Deep2c field of the Garching-Bonn Deep Survey reveals the cD galaxies and demonstrates that they sit at the center of the detected X-ray emission. Nearly 60% of the clusters, groups, and filaments are detected in the known enhanced density regions of the CDFS at z ≅ 0.13, 0.52, 0.68, and 0.73. Additionally, all of the clusters, bar the most distant, are found in these overdense redshift regions. Many of the clusters and groups exhibit signs of ongoing formation seen in their velocity distributions, position within the detected cosmic web, and in one case through the presence of tidally disrupted central galaxies

  9. Clusters, groups, and filaments in the Chandra deep field-south up to redshift 1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dehghan, S.; Johnston-Hollitt, M., E-mail: siamak.dehghan@vuw.ac.nz [School of Chemical and Physical Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, P.O. Box 600, Wellington 6140 (New Zealand)

    2014-03-01

    We present a comprehensive structure detection analysis of the 0.3 deg{sup 2} area of the MUSYC-ACES field, which covers the Chandra Deep Field-South (CDFS). Using a density-based clustering algorithm on the MUSYC and ACES photometric and spectroscopic catalogs, we find 62 overdense regions up to redshifts of 1, including clusters, groups, and filaments. We also present the detection of a relatively small void of ∼10 Mpc{sup 2} at z ∼ 0.53. All structures are confirmed using the DBSCAN method, including the detection of nine structures previously reported in the literature. We present a catalog of all structures present, including their central position, mean redshift, velocity dispersions, and classification based on their morphological and spectroscopic distributions. In particular, we find 13 galaxy clusters and 6 large groups/small clusters. Comparison of these massive structures with published XMM-Newton imaging (where available) shows that 80% of these structures are associated with diffuse, soft-band (0.4-1 keV) X-ray emission, including 90% of all objects classified as clusters. The presence of soft-band X-ray emission in these massive structures (M {sub 200} ≥ 4.9 × 10{sup 13} M {sub ☉}) provides a strong independent confirmation of our methodology and classification scheme. In the closest two clusters identified (z < 0.13) high-quality optical imaging from the Deep2c field of the Garching-Bonn Deep Survey reveals the cD galaxies and demonstrates that they sit at the center of the detected X-ray emission. Nearly 60% of the clusters, groups, and filaments are detected in the known enhanced density regions of the CDFS at z ≅ 0.13, 0.52, 0.68, and 0.73. Additionally, all of the clusters, bar the most distant, are found in these overdense redshift regions. Many of the clusters and groups exhibit signs of ongoing formation seen in their velocity distributions, position within the detected cosmic web, and in one case through the presence of tidally

  10. Stability of Ta-encapsulating Si clusters on Si(111)-(7x7) surfaces

    CERN Document Server

    Uchida, N; Miyazaki, T; Kanayama, T

    2003-01-01

    Tantalum containing Si cluster ions TaSi sub 1 sub 0 sub - sub 1 sub 3 H sub x sup + were synthesized in an ion trap and deposited onto Si(111)-(7x7) surfaces with a kinetic energy of 18 eV. Scanning tunnelling microscope observations revealed that the clusters adsorbed on the surface without decomposition, consistent with ab initio calculation results, that predicted the clusters would have stable Si-cage structures with a Ta atom at the centre. (rapid communication)

  11. Light Readout for a 1 ton Liquid Argon Dark Matter Detector

    CERN Document Server

    Boccone, Vittorio; Baudis, Laura; Otyugova, Polina; Regenfus, Christian

    2010-01-01

    Evidence for dark matter (DM) has been reported using astronomical observations in systems such as the Bullet cluster. Weakly interactive massive particles (WIMPs), in particular the lightest neutralino, are the most popular DM candidates within the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM). Many groups in the world are focussing their attention on the direct detection of DM in the laboratory. The detectors should have large target masses and excellent noise rejection capabilities because of the small cross section between DM and ordinary matter (σWIMP−nucleon < 4 · 10−8 pb). Noble liquids are today considered to be one of the best options for large-size DM experiments, as they have a relatively low ionization energy, good scintillation properties and long electron lifetime. Moreover noble liquid detectors are easily scalable to large masses. This thesis deals with the development of a large (1 ton) LAr WIMP detector (ArDM) which could measure simultaneously light and charge from the scintilla...

  12. Cluster ion-surface interactions: from meV to MeV energies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nordlund, Kai; Meinander, Kristoffer; Jaervi, Tommi T.; Peltola, Jarkko; Samela, Juha [Accelerator Laboratory, University of Helsinki (Finland)

    2008-07-01

    The nature of cluster ion-surface interactions changes dramatically with the kinetic energy of the incoming cluster species. In this talk I review some of our recent work on the nature of cluster-surface interactions spanning an energy range from a few MeV/cluster to about 1 MeV/cluster and cluster sizes in the range of 10 - 1000 atoms/cluster. In the energy range of a few MeV/cluster ion, the kinetic energy of the incoming ion is insignificant compared to the energy gained when the surface potential energy at the cluster-surface interface is released and partly translated into kinetic energy. Even in this energy regime I show that surprisingly drastic effects can occur. When the energy of the incoming cluster is raised to a few eV/atom, the kinetic energy of the incoming cluster starts to affect the deposition. It will cause the cluster to entirely reform on impact. When the energy is raised to the range of keV's/cluster, the clusters start to penetrate the sample, fairly similar to conventional ion implantation. However, in dense targets the cluster ions may stick close to each other long enough to cause a significant enhancement of the heat spike in the material. Finally, I show that at kinetic energies around 1 MeV/cluster the cluster enhancement of the heat spike may lead to dramatic surface effects.

  13. Cluster model of s- and p-shell ΛΛ hypernuclei

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    simplifications the use of cluster model to S = −2 systems has given ..... constructed from Nijmegen soft-core NSC97e potential and are denoted as V e1. ΛΛ ..... This convergence of results reinforces the confidence in the methodology of all the.

  14. Cluster decay of 218U isotope

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shivakumaraswamy, G.; Umesh, T.K.

    2012-01-01

    The phenomenon of spontaneous emission of charged particles heavier than alpha particle and lighter than a fission fragment from radioactive nuclei without accompanied by the emission of neutrons is known as cluster radioactivity or exotic radioactivity. The process of emission of charged particles heavier than alpha particle and lighter than a fission fragment is called exotic decay or cluster decay. The phenomenon of cluster radioactivity was first predicted theoretically by Sandulescu et al in 1980. Rose and Jones made first experimental observations of 14 C emission from 223 Ra in 1984. Several cluster decay modes in trans-lead region have been experimentally observed. The half-life values for different modes of cluster decay from different isotopes of uranium have been calculated using different theoretical models such as the analytical super asymmetric model (ASAFM), Preformed cluster model (PCM) and Coulomb and Proximity potential model (CPPM) etc. Recently some semi-empirical formulae, i.e, single line of universal curve (UNIV), Universal decay law (UDL) for both alpha and cluster radioactivity have also been proposed to explain cluster decay data. The alpha decay half-life of 218-219 U isotopes has been experimentally measured in 2007. The half-life values for different cluster decay modes of 218 U isotopes have been calculated PCM model. Recently in 2011, the half-life values have also been calculated for some cluster decay modes of 222-236 U isotopes using the effective liquid drop description with the varying mass asymmetry (VMAS) shape and effective inertial coefficient. In the light of this, in the present work we have studied the cluster radioactivity of 218 U isotope. The logarithmic half-lives for few cluster decay modes from 218 U isotope have been calculated by using three different approaches, i.e, UNIV proposed by Poenaru et al in 2011, UDL proposed by Qi et al in 2009 and the CPPM model proposed by Santhosh et al in 2002. The CPPM based

  15. The effectiveness of an e-learning course on medication calculation in nursing students: a clustered quasi-experimental study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Lancker, Aurélie; Baldewijns, Katleen; Verhaeghe, Rik; Robays, Hugo; Buyle, Franky; Colman, Roos; Van Hecke, Ann

    2016-09-01

    To evaluate the effectiveness of an e-learning course compared with a face-to-face lecture on medication calculation. The current knowledge on medication calculation of nursing students and nurses is insufficient to provide safe care. A stratified-clustered quasi-experimental study. A random selection of nursing schools were allocated to the e-learning course (intervention group) (seven schools; 189 students) or face-to-face lecture (control group) (six schools, 222 students). Students in both groups completed a validated medication calculation test (maximum score: 16) prior to the course (T0), immediately after the course (T1) and 3 months later (T2). A linear mixed model was used for data analysis. Medication calculation skills improved significantly more by the face-to-face lecture than e-learning course. Students in both groups significantly improved in medication calculation skills immediately after the course (T1) and 3 months later. The results flattened at T2 with a significant decline in the intervention group between T1 and T2 and a non-significant decline in the control group. Based on a subgroup analysis, improvement in medication calculation skills at T2 could only be observed in vocational-level (sub degree) nursing students receiving a face-to-face course. Both medication calculation courses had a positive effect on medication calculation skills. Students receiving traditional face-to-face lecture improved significantly more than the students receiving the e-learning course. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  16. Modeling of 1D motion of interstitial clusters in iron under HVEM irradiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Satoh, Y.; Hamaoka, T.; Matsui, H.

    2007-01-01

    Full text of publication follows: We examined 1D motion of interstitial clusters in Fe under electron irradiation at room temperature using high voltage electron microscopy (HVEM). We found that some impurities have essential effects on the experimental 1D motion behavior. The characteristics of experimental 1D motion were obtained as follows: 1) 1D motion appears as discrete jumps (namely, stepwise positional changes) at irregular intervals. 2) Sometimes a set of several successive jumps occurs between certain two points (back and forth motion). 3) The frequency of 1D jumps is almost proportional to the electron beam intensity, while the distribution of 1D jump distance does not change much with the intensity. Very few 1D jumps are observed with a 200 kV TEM at room temperature. 4) The distance and the frequency of 1D jumps are greatly reduced in a specimen of low purities. Taking account for effects of impurities, we propose a mechanism of the experimental 1D jumps, as follows. Small interstitial clusters are regarded to be essentially mobile as crowdion bundles. Then interstitial clusters in a stationary state are trapped by impurity atom(s), due to elastic interactions between impurities and crowdion bundle. The electron irradiation changes the cluster into a mobile state by a detrapping: for example, the impurity atom is displaced to apart from the crowdion bundle. Then the crowdion bundle makes a free 1D migration until it is trapped by another impurity atom. Because of small activation energy for 1D migration, we cannot observe the detailed 1D random walk process, but a stepwise positional change from an impurity to another impurity. The average size of interstitial clusters observed in the present experiments was around 5 nm, corresponding to a bundle of 300 crowdions. In a rough estimate assuming that an impurity atom on any crowdion in the crowdion bundle prevent the migration of the bundle, the mean free path is about 75 nm and 7.5 nm at the impurity

  17. p62/SQSTM1 is required for Parkin-induced mitochondrial clustering but not mitophagy; VDAC1 is dispensable for both

    Science.gov (United States)

    Narendra, Derek P; Kane, Lesley A; Hauser, David N; Fearnley, Ian M

    2010-01-01

    Mitochondria sustain damage with aging, and the resulting mitochondrial dysfunction has been implicated in a number of diseases including parkinson disease. We recently demonstrated that the E3 ubiquitin ligase Parkin, which is linked to recessive forms of parkinsonism, causes a dramatic increase in mitophagy and a change in mitochondrial distribution, following its translocation from the cytosol to mitochondria. Investigating how Parkin induces these changes may offer insight into the mechanisms that lead to the sequestration and elimination of damaged mitochondria. We report that following Parkin's translocation from the cytosol to mitochondria, Parkin (but not a pathogenic mutant) promotes the K63-linked polyubiquitination of mitochondrial substrate(s) and recruits the ubiquitin- and LC3-binding protein, p62/SQSTM1, to mitochondria. After its recruitment, p62/SQSTM1 mediates the aggregation of dysfunctional mitochondria through polymerization via its PB1 domain, in a manner analogous to its aggregation of polyubiquitinated proteins. Surprisingly and in contrast to what has been recently reported for ubiquitin-induced pexophagy and xenophagy, p62 appears to be dispensable for mitophagy. Similarly, mitochondrial-anchored ubiquitin is sufficient to recruit p62 and promote mitochondrial clustering, but does not promote mitophagy. Although VDAC1 (but not VDAC2) is ubiquitinated following mitochondrial depolarization, we find VDAC1 cannot fully account for the mitochondrial K63-linked ubiquitin immunoreactivity observed following depolarization, as it is also observed in VDAC1/3−/− mouse embryonic fibroblasts. Additionally, we find VDAC1 and VDAC3 are dispensable for the recruitment of p62, mitochondrial clustering and mitophagy. These results demonstrate that mitochondria are aggregated by p62, following its recruitment by Parkin in a VDAC1-independent manner. They also suggest that proteins other than p62 are likely required for mitophagy downstream of Parkin

  18. Clustering of quasars in SDSS-IV eBOSS: study of potential systematics and bias determination

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Laurent, Pierre; Goff, Jean-Marc Le; Burtin, Etienne; Bourboux, Hélion du Mas des; Palanque-Delabrouille, Nathalie [IRFU, CEA, Université Paris-Saclay, F-91191 Gif-sur-Yvette (France); Eftekharzadeh, Sarah; Myers, Adam [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071 (United States); White, Martin [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, 1 Cyclotron Rd, Berkeley CA 94720 (United States); Ross, Ashley J. [Center for Cosmology and AstroParticle Physics, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210 (United States); Tinker, Jeremy [Center for Cosmology and Particle Physics, Department of Physics, New York University, New York, 10003 (United States); Tojeiro, Rita [School of Physics and Astronomy, North Haugh, St. Andrews KY16 9SS (United Kingdom); Bautista, Julian; Dawson, Kyle [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112 (United States); Brinkmann, Jonathan [Apache Point Observatory, P.O. Box 59, Sunspot, NM 88349 (United States); Comparat, Johan [Max-Planck-Institut für Extraterrestrische Physik, Giessenbachstraße, 85748 Garching (Germany); Kneib, Jean-Paul [Laboratoire d' Astrophysique, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne (Switzerland); McGreer, Ian D. [Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721–0065 (United States); Percival, Will J. [Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation, University of Portsmouth, Dennis Sciama building, PO1 3FX, Portsmouth (United Kingdom); Prada, Francisco, E-mail: jmlegoff@cea.fr [Instituto de Fìsica Teórica (IFT) UAM/CSIC, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Cantoblanco, E-28049 Madrid (Spain); and others

    2017-07-01

    We study the first year of the eBOSS quasar sample in the redshift range 0.9< z <2.2 which includes 68,772 homogeneously selected quasars. We show that the main source of systematics in the evaluation of the correlation function arises from inhomogeneities in the quasar target selection, particularly related to the extinction and depth of the imaging data used for targeting. We propose a weighting scheme that mitigates these systematics. We measure the quasar correlation function and provide the most accurate measurement to date of the quasar bias in this redshift range, b {sub Q} = 2.45 ± 0.05 at z-bar =1.55, together with its evolution with redshift. We use this information to determine the minimum mass of the halo hosting the quasars and the characteristic halo mass, which we find to be both independent of redshift within statistical error. Using a recently-measured quasar-luminosity-function we also determine the quasar duty cycle. The size of this first year sample is insufficient to detect any luminosity dependence to quasar clustering and this issue should be further studied with the final ∼500,000 eBOSS quasar sample.

  19. Argonne Natl Lab receives TeraFLOP Cluster Linux NetworX

    CERN Multimedia

    2002-01-01

    " Linux NetworX announced today it has delivered an Evolocity II (E2) Linux cluster to Argonne National Laboratory that is capable of performing more than one trillion calculations per second (1 teraFLOP)" (1/2 page).

  20. A Photometrically Detected Forming Cluster of Galaxies at Redshift 1.6 in the GOODS Field

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castellano, M.; Salimbeni, S.; Trevese, D.; Grazian, A.; Pentericci, L.; Fiore, F.; Fontana, A.; Giallongo, E.; Santini, P.; Cristiani, S.; Nonino, M.; Vanzella, E.

    2007-12-01

    We report the discovery of a localized overdensity at z~1.6 in the GOODS-South field, presumably a poor cluster in the process of formation. The three-dimensional galaxy density has been estimated on the basis of well-calibrated photometric redshifts from the multiband photometric GOODS-MUSIC catalog using the (2+1)-dimensional technique. The density peak is embedded in the larger scale overdensity of galaxies known to exist at z=1.61 in the area. The properties of the member galaxies are compared to those of the surrounding field, and we find that the two populations are significantly different, supporting the reality of the structure. The reddest galaxies, once evolved according to their best-fit models, have colors consistent with the red sequence of lower redshift clusters. The estimated M200 total mass of the cluster is in the range 1.3×1014-5.7×1014 Msolar, depending on the assumed bias factor b. An upper limit for the 2-10 keV X-ray luminosity, based on the 1 Ms Chandra observations, is LX=0.5×1043 erg s-1, suggesting that the cluster has not yet reached the virial equilibrium.

  1. ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS FEEDBACK AND ENTROPY INJECTION IN GALAXY CLUSTER CORES

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chaudhuri, Anya; Majumdar, Subhabrata; Nath, Biman B.

    2013-01-01

    We make the first estimate of non-gravitational energy profiles in galaxy cluster cores (and beyond) based on observational data. Comparing the observed entropy profiles within r 500 , from the Representative XMM-Newton Cluster Structure Survey to simulated base entropy profiles without feedback from both adaptive mesh refinement (AMR) and smoothed particle hydrodynamic (SPH) non-radiative simulations, we estimate the amount of additional non-gravitational energy, E ICM , contained in the intracluster medium (ICM), as well as the total energy feedback, E Feedback , from active galactic nuclei (AGNs; the central AGNs in most cases) into the clusters. The total feedback energy scales with the mean spectroscopic temperature as E Feedback ∝T sp 2.52±0.08 and E Feedback ∝T sp 2.17±0.11 for the SPH and AMR baseline profiles. The mean non-gravitational energy per particle within r 500 remaining in the ICM after energy lost during cooling is ε ICM = 2.8 ± 0.8 keV for the SPH theoretical relation and ε ICM = 1.7 ± 0.9 keV for the AMR theoretical relation. We use the NRAO/VLA Sky Survey source catalog to determine the radio luminosity, L R , at 1.4 GHz of the central source(s) of our sample. For T sp > 3 keV, the E Feedback correlates with L R , although with different normalization for cool-core and non-cool-core clusters. We show that AGNs could provide a significant portion of the feedback

  2. Investigation of correlations in nuclei with the (e,e'X) reaction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ent, R.

    1989-01-01

    In this thesis (e,e'd) experiments on 4 He, 6 Li and 12 C, and also a first (e,e'α) experiment on 6 LI are described. The aim of these experiments is twofold: to study the mechanism of (e,e'X) reactions and to extract useful spectroscopic information, i.e. the probability to find a cluster inside a nucleus and the cluster bound-state wave function, from these experiments. Ch. 2 contains a description of the 6 Li(e,e'd) 4 He reaction. The α-d momentum distribution in the ground state of 6 Li has been measured in parallel kinematics in the momentum range 0 m 6 Li. The results agree with the predictions of a three-body αNN model of 6 Li. Ch. 3 deals with deuteron formation in the reaction 12 C(e,e'd) 1O Be. The lowest T=1 state in 1O Be is found to be as strongly excited as the T=0 ground state, although the transition to the T=1 state is isospin forbidden for direct deuteron knockout. The data could consistently be explained by a mechanism of integration of a p-n pair in a relative T=1 state into a deuteron. In ch. 4 the mechanism of the 4 He(e,e'd) 2 H reaction is considered. The cross section for this reaction has been measured as a function of the four-momentum transfer at a missing momentum of 125 MeV/c. The data show that this reaction cannot be described as a quasielastic knockout of the deuteron. The data are compared with a microscopic calculation of the cross section for a direct knockout reaction. Ch. 5 gives an extensive review of all three (e,e'd) experiments. The model of an electron-induced cluster knockout process is discussed in a quasi elastic and a semi-microscopic approach. This description is compared with the data to test the reaction mechanism and the possibility to extract nuclear structure information. In ch. 7 the 6 Li(e,e'α) reaction is considered. This reaction was measured with a special detector, described in Ch. 6. (H.W.). 175 refs.; 32 figs.; 2 tabs

  3. Structure, reactivity and electronic properties of Mn doped Ni13 clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Banerjee, Radhashyam; Datta, Soumendu; Mookerjee, Abhijit

    2013-01-01

    In this work we have studied the structural and magnetic properties of Ni 13 cluster mono- and bi-doped with Mn atoms. We have noted their tendency of being reactive toward the H 2 molecule. We have found unusually enhanced stability in the mono-doped cluster (i.e. of the Ni 12 Mn) and the diminished stability of the corresponding chemisorbed cluster, Ni 12 MnH 2 . Our analysis of the stability and HOMO–LUMO gap explains this unusual behavior. Interestingly, we have also seen the quenching in the net magnetic moment upon H 2 absorption in the doped Ni 13−m Mn m alloy clusters. This has been reported earlier for smaller Ni n clusters [1

  4. Structure, reactivity and electronic properties of Mn doped Ni13 clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Banerjee, Radhashyam; Datta, Soumendu; Mookerjee, Abhijit

    2013-06-01

    In this work we have studied the structural and magnetic properties of Ni13 cluster mono- and bi-doped with Mn atoms. We have noted their tendency of being reactive toward the H2 molecule. We have found unusually enhanced stability in the mono-doped cluster (i.e. of the Ni12Mn) and the diminished stability of the corresponding chemisorbed cluster, Ni12MnH2. Our analysis of the stability and HOMO-LUMO gap explains this unusual behavior. Interestingly, we have also seen the quenching in the net magnetic moment upon H2 absorption in the doped NiMnm alloy clusters. This has been reported earlier for smaller Nin clusters [1].

  5. Weak cooperativity in selected iron(II) 1D coordination polymers

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dirtu, Marinela M.; Gillard, Damien; Naik, Anil D. [Universite Catholique de Louvain, Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences, MOST - Inorganic Chemistry (Belgium); Rotaru, Aurelian [' Stefan cel Mare' University, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (Romania); Garcia, Yann, E-mail: ann.garcia@uclouvain.be [Universite Catholique de Louvain, Institute of Condensed Matter and Nanosciences, MOST - Inorganic Chemistry (Belgium)

    2012-03-15

    The spin crossover behaviour of a new class of Fe{sup II} coordination polymers [Fe(phtptrz){sub 3}]I{sub 2} (1), [Fe(phtptrz){sub 3}](ReO{sub 4}){sub 2} Bullet CH{sub 3}OH (2) and [Fe(phtptrz){sub 3}]TaF{sub 7} Bullet 6H{sub 2}O (3) based on a novel ligand 4-(3{sup Prime} -N-phtalimido-propyl)-1,2,4-triazole (phtptrz), were investigated by temperature dependent {sup 57}Fe Moessbauer spectroscopy and magnetic susceptibility measurements. The adverse effect of bulky substituent on 1,2,4-triazole, favorable supramolecular interactions and influence of increasing anion size on spin crossover profile is discussed. 1 and 2 show thermally induced spin conversions of gradual and incomplete nature with associated thermochromism, and transition temperatures T{sub 1/2} {approx} 163 K and 137 K, respectively. A spin state crossover is also identified for 3.

  6. Magnetic phase transition in 2 nm NixCu1-x (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) clusters

    KAUST Repository

    Mokkath, Junais Habeeb; Schwingenschlö gl, Udo

    2014-01-01

    NixCu1-x (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) clusters with a diameter of 2 nm (459 atoms) are modeled by a combination of basin hopping global sampling and reoptimization within spin-polarized density functional theory. The favorable structures for different Ni/Cu ratios

  7. Membership, binarity, and rotation of F-G-K stars in the open cluster Blanco 1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mermilliod, J.-C.; Platais, I.; James, D. J.; Grenon, M.; Cargile, P. A.

    2008-07-01

    Context: The nearby open cluster Blanco 1 is of considerable astrophysical interest for formation and evolution studies of open clusters because it is the third highest Galactic latitude cluster known. It has been observed often, but so far no definitive and comprehensive membership determination is readily available. Aims: An observing programme was carried out to study the stellar population of Blanco 1, and especially the membership and binary frequency of the F5-K0 dwarfs. Methods: We obtained radial-velocities with the CORAVEL spectrograph in the field of Blanco 1 for a sample of 148 F-G-K candidate stars in the magnitude range 10 rate reaches 40% (27/68) if one includes the photometric binaries. The cluster mean heliocentric radial velocity is +5.53 ± 0.11 km s-1 based on the most reliable 49 members. The V sin i distribution is similar to that of the Pleiades, confirming the age similarities between the two clusters. Conclusions: This study clearly demonstrates that, in spite of the cluster's high Galactic latitude, three membership criteria - radial velocity, proper motion, and photometry - are necessary for performing a reliable membership selection. Furthermore, even with accurate and extensive data, ambiguous cases still remain. Based on observations collected with the Danish 1.54-m and the Swiss telescopes at the European Southern Observatory, La Silla, Chile, and with the old YALO 1-m telescope at the Cerro Tololo InterAmerican Observatory, Chile. Table [see full textsee full textsee full textsee full textsee full textsee full text] is also available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/485/95

  8. Defining objective clusters for rabies virus sequences using affinity propagation clustering.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Susanne Fischer

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Rabies is caused by lyssaviruses, and is one of the oldest known zoonoses. In recent years, more than 21,000 nucleotide sequences of rabies viruses (RABV, from the prototype species rabies lyssavirus, have been deposited in public databases. Subsequent phylogenetic analyses in combination with metadata suggest geographic distributions of RABV. However, these analyses somewhat experience technical difficulties in defining verifiable criteria for cluster allocations in phylogenetic trees inviting for a more rational approach. Therefore, we applied a relatively new mathematical clustering algorythm named 'affinity propagation clustering' (AP to propose a standardized sub-species classification utilizing full-genome RABV sequences. Because AP has the advantage that it is computationally fast and works for any meaningful measure of similarity between data samples, it has previously been applied successfully in bioinformatics, for analysis of microarray and gene expression data, however, cluster analysis of sequences is still in its infancy. Existing (516 and original (46 full genome RABV sequences were used to demonstrate the application of AP for RABV clustering. On a global scale, AP proposed four clusters, i.e. New World cluster, Arctic/Arctic-like, Cosmopolitan, and Asian as previously assigned by phylogenetic studies. By combining AP with established phylogenetic analyses, it is possible to resolve phylogenetic relationships between verifiably determined clusters and sequences. This workflow will be useful in confirming cluster distributions in a uniform transparent manner, not only for RABV, but also for other comparative sequence analyses.

  9. CREATION AND EXPANSION OF A CLUSTER: THE CASE OF THE CERES CLUSTER, GO ABSTRACT PROCESO DE FORMACIÓN Y EXPANSIÓN DE CLUSTER: EL CASO DEL AGLOMERADO DE CERES, GO PROCESSO DE FORMAÇÃO E EXPANSÃO DE CLUSTER: O CASO DO AGLOMERADO DE CERES, GO

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Flávio Manoel Coelho Borges Cardoso

    2013-01-01

     trayectoria. La segunda tiene en cuenta la existencia de factores sociológicos, destacando las redes sociales, los vínculos profesionales y familiares, la confianza, los valores, reglas y tradiciones como responsables por la multiplicación de empresas de un mismo sector  en determinada localidad. Por  medio de un estudio exploratorio a partir de entrevistas con 20 de los 65 médicos de la ciudad, se concluye que, para el caso de Ceres, la gran demanda por servicios médicos, las acciones del gobierno para poblar la Región CentroOeste y las actividades de los pioneros, incentivando el espíritu empresarial de los médicos, fueron factores determinantes de la formación y de la expansión del cluster de salud.Este trabalho discute os fatores que favoreceram a formação e a expansão do aglomerado de organizações de saúde no município de Ceres, Goiás. A despeito de sua pequena população, cerca de 19.000 habitantes, Ceres é reconhecida como uma cidade-polo na prestação de serviços de saúde. Neste trabalho, analisamos a formação e expansão do cluster de saúde de Ceres sob duas perspectivas. A primeira considera a existência dos chamados fatores econômicos, como a demanda, a infraestrutura, a presença de mão de obra especializada, as políticas de governo, o convite de empresários a profissionais especializados e a dependência da trajetória. A segunda leva em conta a existência de fatores sociológicos, destacando as redes sociais, os vínculos profissionais e familiares, a confiança, os valores, regras e tradições como responsáveis pela multiplicação de empresas de um mesmo setor  em determinada localidade. Por meio de um estudo exploratório a partir de entrevistas com 20 dos 65 médicos da cidade, conclui-se que, para o caso de Ceres, a grande demanda por serviços médicos, as ações do  governo para povoar a Região Centro-Oeste e as atividades dos pioneiros, incentivando o empreendedorismo dos médicos, foram fatores

  10. Robust Inference with Multi-way Clustering

    OpenAIRE

    A. Colin Cameron; Jonah B. Gelbach; Douglas L. Miller; Doug Miller

    2009-01-01

    In this paper we propose a variance estimator for the OLS estimator as well as for nonlinear estimators such as logit, probit and GMM. This variance estimator enables cluster-robust inference when there is two-way or multi-way clustering that is non-nested. The variance estimator extends the standard cluster-robust variance estimator or sandwich estimator for one-way clustering (e.g. Liang and Zeger (1986), Arellano (1987)) and relies on similar relatively weak distributional assumptions. Our...

  11. Tetrahedral cluster and pseudo molecule: New approaches to Calculate Absolute Surface Energy of Zinc Blende (111)/(-1-1-1) Surface

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yiou; Zhang, Jingzhao; Tse, Kinfai; Wong, Lun; Chan, Chunkai; Deng, Bei; Zhu, Junyi

    Determining accurate absolute surface energies for polar surfaces of semiconductors has been a great challenge in decades. Here, we propose pseudo-hydrogen passivation to calculate them, using density functional theory approaches. By calculating the energy contribution from pseudo-hydrogen using either a pseudo molecule method or a tetrahedral cluster method, we obtained (111)/(-1-1-1) surfaces energies of Si, GaP, GaAs, and ZnS with high self-consistency. Our findings may greatly enhance the basic understandings of different surfaces and lead to novel strategies in the crystal growth. We would like to thank Su-huai Wei for helpful discussions. Computing resources were provided by the High Performance Cluster Computing Centre, Hong Kong Baptist University. This work was supported by the start-up funding and direct Grant with the Project.

  12. THE CLUSTER AND FIELD GALAXY ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEUS FRACTION AT z = 1-1.5: EVIDENCE FOR A REVERSAL OF THE LOCAL ANTICORRELATION BETWEEN ENVIRONMENT AND AGN FRACTION

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Martini, Paul [Department of Astronomy and Center for Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics, Ohio State University, 140 West 18th Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210 (United States); Miller, E. D.; Bautz, M. [Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); Brodwin, M. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Missouri, 5110 Rockhill Road, Kansas City, MO 64110 (United States); Stanford, S. A. [Department of Physics, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616 (United States); Gonzalez, Anthony H. [Department of Astronomy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States); Hickox, R. C. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, Dartmouth College, 6127 Wilder Laboratory, Hanover, NH 03755 (United States); Stern, D.; Eisenhardt, P. R. [Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109 (United States); Galametz, A. [INAF-Osservatorio di Roma, Via Frascati 33, I-00040 Monteporzio (Italy); Norman, D.; Dey, A. [NOAO, 950 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85719 (United States); Jannuzi, B. T. [Department of Astronomy and Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, 933 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Murray, S.; Jones, C. [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Brown, M. J. I., E-mail: martini@astronomy.ohio-state.edu [School of Physics, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3800 (Australia)

    2013-05-01

    The fraction of cluster galaxies that host luminous active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is an important probe of AGN fueling processes, the cold interstellar medium at the centers of galaxies, and how tightly black holes and galaxies co-evolve. We present a new measurement of the AGN fraction in a sample of 13 clusters of galaxies (M {>=} 10{sup 14} M{sub Sun }) at 1 < z < 1.5 selected from the Spitzer/IRAC Shallow Cluster Survey, as well as the field fraction in the immediate vicinity of these clusters, and combine these data with measurements from the literature to quantify the relative evolution of cluster and field AGN from the present to z {approx} 3. We estimate that the cluster AGN fraction at 1 < z < 1.5 is f{sub A} = 3.0{sup +2.4}{sub -1.4}% for AGNs with a rest-frame, hard X-ray luminosity greater than L{sub X,{sub H}} {>=} 10{sup 44} erg s{sup -1}. This fraction is measured relative to all cluster galaxies more luminous than M{sup *}{sub 3.6}(z) + 1, where M{sup *}{sub 3.6}(z) is the absolute magnitude of the break in the galaxy luminosity function at the cluster redshift in the IRAC 3.6 {mu}m bandpass. The cluster AGN fraction is 30 times greater than the 3{sigma} upper limit on the value for AGNs of similar luminosity at z {approx} 0.25, as well as more than an order of magnitude greater than the AGN fraction at z {approx} 0.75. AGNs with L{sub X,{sub H}} {>=} 10{sup 43} erg s{sup -1} exhibit similarly pronounced evolution with redshift. In contrast to the local universe, where the luminous AGN fraction is higher in the field than in clusters, the X-ray and MIR-selected AGN fractions in the field and clusters are consistent at 1 < z < 1.5. This is evidence that the cluster AGN population has evolved more rapidly than the field population from z {approx} 1.5 to the present. This environment-dependent AGN evolution mimics the more rapid evolution of star-forming galaxies in clusters relative to the field.

  13. Effects of hyperthermal proton bombardment on alkanethiol self-assembled monolayer on Au(1 1 1)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xi Luan [Surface Science Western, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario N6A 5B7 (Canada); Zheng Zhi; Lam, N.-S. [Department of Physics, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong (China); Grizzi, Oscar [Centro Atomico Bariloche, 8400 San Carlos de Bariloche, Rio Negro (Argentina); Lau, W.-M. [Surface Science Western, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario N6A 5B7 (Canada)], E-mail: llau22@uwo.ca

    2007-10-31

    The effects of hyperthermal proton bombardment on alkanethiol self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on Au(1 1 1) are studied with scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS). The STM and XPS results show that proton bombardment with proton energy as low as 2 eV can induce cross-linking of the adsorbed alkanethiols and transform the original ordered SAM lattice to an array of nanoclusters of the cross-linked alkanethiols. For a bombardment at 3 eV with a fluence of 3x10{sup 15} cm{sup -2}, the typical cluster size is about 5 nm. In addition, the cluster size distribution is narrow, with no cluster larger than 8 nm. The cluster growth can be promoted by increasing the fluence at a fixed bombardment energy or increasing the energy at a fixed fluence. This indicates that surface diffusion of alkanethiols and cluster growth can be harnessed by the control of the bombardment energy and fluence.

  14. Effects of hyperthermal proton bombardment on alkanethiol self-assembled monolayer on Au(1 1 1)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xi Luan; Zheng Zhi; Lam, N.-S.; Grizzi, Oscar; Lau, W.-M.

    2007-01-01

    The effects of hyperthermal proton bombardment on alkanethiol self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on Au(1 1 1) are studied with scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS). The STM and XPS results show that proton bombardment with proton energy as low as 2 eV can induce cross-linking of the adsorbed alkanethiols and transform the original ordered SAM lattice to an array of nanoclusters of the cross-linked alkanethiols. For a bombardment at 3 eV with a fluence of 3x10 15 cm -2 , the typical cluster size is about 5 nm. In addition, the cluster size distribution is narrow, with no cluster larger than 8 nm. The cluster growth can be promoted by increasing the fluence at a fixed bombardment energy or increasing the energy at a fixed fluence. This indicates that surface diffusion of alkanethiols and cluster growth can be harnessed by the control of the bombardment energy and fluence

  15. Save our inboxes! Use e-mail wisely

    CERN Multimedia

    Achintya Rao

    2013-01-01

    At CERN, with collaborators all over the world, e-mail is inevitably the primary means of communication: we use it for everything from coordinating projects to organising lunches. But e-mail can also be one of the most inefficient means of communication we have! Here's how to fix it.   Let’s get straight to the point: we receive too many e-mails. Think about all the e-mails that you deleted without a second thought. Think about the times you’ve unnecessarily been in CC. Take a look at the unread e-mails sitting in your inbox at this very moment, ones that you have no intention of ever looking at. You can, however, tame this overload with a few simple measures and turn e-mail into an important communication and productivity tool. Many recommendations for improving e-mail etiquette suggest an abrasive approach riddled with bullet points. In a vastly multi-cultural setting such as CERN, however this approach may fail. So, here are a few dos and don’ts based o...

  16. Computational study of AuSi{sub n} (n=1-9) nanoalloy clusters invoking DFT based descriptors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ranjan, Prabhat; Kumar, Ajay [Department of Mechatronics, Manipal University Jaipur Dehmi Kalan, Jaipur-303007 (India); Chakraborty, Tanmoy, E-mail: tanmoy.chakraborty@jaipur.manipal.edu, E-mail: tanmoychem@gmail.com [Department of Chemistry, Manipal University Jaipur Dehmi Kalan, Jaipur-303007 (India)

    2016-04-13

    Nanoalloy clusters formed between Au and Si are topics of great interest today from both scientific and technological point of view. Due to its remarkable catalytic, electronic, mechanical and magnetic properties Au-Si nanoalloy clusters have extensive applications in the field of microelectronics, catalysis, biomedicine, and jewelry industry. Density Functional Theory (DFT) is a new paradigm of quantum mechanics, which is very much popular to study the electronic properties of materials. Conceptual DFT based descriptors have been invoked to correlate the experimental properties of nanoalloy clusters. In this venture, we have systematically investigated AuSi{sub n} (n=1-9) nanoalloy clusters in the theoretical frame of the B3LYP exchange correlation. The experimental properties of AuSi{sub n} (n=1-9) nanoalloy clusters are correlated in terms of DFT based descriptors viz. HOMO-LUMO gap, Electronegativity (χ), Global Hardness (η), Global Softness (S) and Electrophilicity Index (ω). The calculated HOMO-LUMO gap exhibits interesting odd-even alteration behaviour, indicating that even numbered clusters possess higher stability as compare to their neighbour odd numbered clusters. This study also reflects a very well agreement between experimental bond length and computed data.

  17. Cluster-cluster aggregation of Ising dipolar particles under thermal noise

    KAUST Repository

    Suzuki, Masaru

    2009-08-14

    The cluster-cluster aggregation processes of Ising dipolar particles under thermal noise are investigated in the dilute condition. As the temperature increases, changes in the typical structures of clusters are observed from chainlike (D1) to crystalline (D2) through fractal structures (D1.45), where D is the fractal dimension. By calculating the bending energy of the chainlike structure, it is found that the transition temperature is associated with the energy gap between the chainlike and crystalline configurations. The aggregation dynamics changes from being dominated by attraction to diffusion involving changes in the dynamic exponent z=0.2 to 0.5. In the region of temperature where the fractal clusters grow, different growth rates are observed between charged and neutral clusters. Using the Smoluchowski equation with a twofold kernel, this hetero-aggregation process is found to result from two types of dynamics: the diffusive motion of neutral clusters and the weak attractive motion between charged clusters. The fact that changes in structures and dynamics take place at the same time suggests that transitions in the structure of clusters involve marked changes in the dynamics of the aggregation processes. © 2009 The American Physical Society.

  18. Star-forming brightest cluster galaxies at 0.25 1.25 : A transitioning fuel supply

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McDonald, M.; Stalder, B.; Bayliss, M.; Allen, S. W.; Applegate, D. E.; Ashby, M. L. N.; Bautz, M.; Benson, B. A.; Bleem, L. E.; Brodwin, M.; Carlstrom, J. E.; Chiu, I.; Desai, S.; Gonzalez, A. H.; Hlavacek-Larrondo, J.; Holzapfel, W. L.; Marrone, D. P.; Miller, E. D.; Reichardt, C. L.; Saliwanchik, B. R.; Saro, A.; Schrabback, T.; Stanford, S. A.; Stark, A. A.; Vieira, J. D.; Zenteno, A.

    2016-01-22

    We present a multiwavelength study of the 90 brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) in a sample of galaxy clusters selected via the Sunyaev Zel'dovich effect by the South Pole Telescope, utilizing data from various ground- and space-based facilities. We infer the star-formation rate (SFR) for the BCG in each cluster—based on the UV and IR continuum luminosity, as well as the [O ii]λλ3726,3729 emission line luminosity in cases where spectroscopy is available—and find seven systems with SFR > 100 M⊙ yr-1. We find that the BCG SFR exceeds 10 M⊙ yr-1 in 31 of 90 (34%) cases at 0.25 < z < 1.25, compared to ~1%–5% at z ~ 0 from the literature. At z gsim 1, this fraction increases to ${92}_{-31}^{+6}$%, implying a steady decrease in the BCG SFR over the past ~9 Gyr. At low-z, we find that the specific SFR in BCGs is declining more slowly with time than for field or cluster galaxies, which is most likely due to the replenishing fuel from the cooling ICM in relaxed, cool core clusters. At z gsim 0.6, the correlation between the cluster central entropy and BCG star formation—which is well established at z ~ 0—is not present. Instead, we find that the most star-forming BCGs at high-z are found in the cores of dynamically unrelaxed clusters. We use data from the Hubble Space Telescope to investigate the rest-frame near-UV morphology of a subsample of the most star-forming BCGs, and find complex, highly asymmetric UV morphologies on scales as large as ~50–60 kpc. The high fraction of star-forming BCGs hosted in unrelaxed, non-cool core clusters at early times suggests that the dominant mode of fueling star formation in BCGs may have recently transitioned from galaxy–galaxy interactions to ICM cooling.

  19. Galaxy kinematics in the XMMU J2235-2557 cluster field at z 1.4

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pérez-Martínez, J. M.; Ziegler, B.; Verdugo, M.; Böhm, A.; Tanaka, M.

    2017-09-01

    Aims: The relationship between baryonic and dark components in galaxies varies with the environment and cosmic time. Galaxy scaling relations describe strong trends between important physical properties. A very important quantitative tool in case of spiral galaxies is the Tully-Fisher relation (TFR), which combines the luminosity of the stellar population with the characteristic rotational velocity (Vmax) taken as proxy for the total mass. In order to constrain galaxy evolution in clusters, we need measurements of the kinematic status of cluster galaxies at the starting point of the hierarchical assembly of clusters and the epoch when cosmic star formation peaks. Methods: We took spatially resolved slit FORS2 spectra of 19 cluster galaxies at z 1.4, and 8 additional field galaxies at 1 200 km s-1). This mild evolution may be driven by younger stellar populations (SP) of distant galaxies with respect to their local counterparts, and thus, an increasing luminosity is expected toward higher redshifts. However, the low-mass subsample (Vmax medium. Based on observations with the European Southern Observatory Very Large Telescope (ESO-VLT), observing run ID 091.B-0778(B).

  20. Management of cluster headache

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tfelt-Hansen, Peer C; Jensen, Rigmor H

    2012-01-01

    The prevalence of cluster headache is 0.1% and cluster headache is often not diagnosed or misdiagnosed as migraine or sinusitis. In cluster headache there is often a considerable diagnostic delay - an average of 7 years in a population-based survey. Cluster headache is characterized by very severe...... or severe orbital or periorbital pain with a duration of 15-180 minutes. The cluster headache attacks are accompanied by characteristic associated unilateral symptoms such as tearing, nasal congestion and/or rhinorrhoea, eyelid oedema, miosis and/or ptosis. In addition, there is a sense of restlessness...... and agitation. Patients may have up to eight attacks per day. Episodic cluster headache (ECH) occurs in clusters of weeks to months duration, whereas chronic cluster headache (CCH) attacks occur for more than 1 year without remissions. Management of cluster headache is divided into acute attack treatment...

  1. Ionization of nitrogen cluster beam

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yano, Katsuki; Be, S.H.; Enjoji, Hiroshi; Okamoto, Kosuke

    1975-01-01

    A nitrogen cluster beam (neutral particle intensity of 28.6 mAsub(eq)) is ionized by electron collisions in a Bayard-Alpert gauge type ionizer. The extraction efficiency of about 65% is obtained at an electron current of 10 mA with an energy of 50 eV. The mean cluster size produced at a pressure of 663 Torr and temperature of 77.3 K is 2x10 5 molecules per cluster. By the Coulomb repulsion force, multiply ionized cluster ions are broken up into smaller fragments and the cluster ion size reduces to one-fourth at an electron current of 15 mA. Mean neutral cluster sizes depend strongly on the initial degree of saturation PHI 0 and are 2x10 5 , 7x10 4 and 3x10 4 molecules per cluster at PHI 0 's of 0.87, 0.66 and 0.39, respectively. (auth.)

  2. Cluster Tails for Critical Power-Law Inhomogeneous Random Graphs

    Science.gov (United States)

    van der Hofstad, Remco; Kliem, Sandra; van Leeuwaarden, Johan S. H.

    2018-04-01

    Recently, the scaling limit of cluster sizes for critical inhomogeneous random graphs of rank-1 type having finite variance but infinite third moment degrees was obtained in Bhamidi et al. (Ann Probab 40:2299-2361, 2012). It was proved that when the degrees obey a power law with exponent τ \\in (3,4), the sequence of clusters ordered in decreasing size and multiplied through by n^{-(τ -2)/(τ -1)} converges as n→ ∞ to a sequence of decreasing non-degenerate random variables. Here, we study the tails of the limit of the rescaled largest cluster, i.e., the probability that the scaling limit of the largest cluster takes a large value u, as a function of u. This extends a related result of Pittel (J Combin Theory Ser B 82(2):237-269, 2001) for the Erdős-Rényi random graph to the setting of rank-1 inhomogeneous random graphs with infinite third moment degrees. We make use of delicate large deviations and weak convergence arguments.

  3. A quadrupole ion trap as low-energy cluster ion beam source

    CERN Document Server

    Uchida, N; Kanayama, T

    2003-01-01

    Kinetic energy distribution of ion beams was measured by a retarding field energy analyzer for a mass-selective cluster ion beam deposition system that uses a quadrupole ion trap as a cluster ion beam source. The results indicated that the system delivers a cluster-ion beam with energy distribution of approx 2 eV, which corresponded well to the calculation results of the trapping potentials in the ion trap. Using this deposition system, mass-selected hydrogenated Si cluster ions Si sub n H sub x sup + were actually deposited on Si(111)-(7x7) surfaces at impact kinetic energy E sub d of 3-30 eV. Observation by using a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) demonstrated that Si sub 6 H sub x sup + cluster ions landed on the surface without decomposition at E sub d =3 eV, while the deposition was destructive at E sub d>=18 eV. (author)

  4. The molecular epidemiology of HIV-1 in the Comunidad Valenciana (Spain): analysis of transmission clusters.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patiño-Galindo, Juan Ángel; Torres-Puente, Manoli; Bracho, María Alma; Alastrué, Ignacio; Juan, Amparo; Navarro, David; Galindo, María José; Ocete, Dolores; Ortega, Enrique; Gimeno, Concepción; Belda, Josefina; Domínguez, Victoria; Moreno, Rosario; González-Candelas, Fernando

    2017-09-14

    HIV infections are still a very serious concern for public heath worldwide. We have applied molecular evolution methods to study the HIV-1 epidemics in the Comunidad Valenciana (CV, Spain) from a public health surveillance perspective. For this, we analysed 1804 HIV-1 sequences comprising protease and reverse transcriptase (PR/RT) coding regions, sampled between 2004 and 2014. These sequences were subtyped and subjected to phylogenetic analyses in order to detect transmission clusters. In addition, univariate and multinomial comparisons were performed to detect epidemiological differences between HIV-1 subtypes, and risk groups. The HIV epidemic in the CV is dominated by subtype B infections among local men who have sex with men (MSM). 270 transmission clusters were identified (>57% of the dataset), 12 of which included ≥10 patients; 11 of subtype B (9 affecting MSMs) and one (n = 21) of CRF14, affecting predominately intravenous drug users (IDUs). Dated phylogenies revealed these large clusters to have originated from the mid-80s to the early 00 s. Subtype B is more likely to form transmission clusters than non-B variants and MSMs to cluster than other risk groups. Multinomial analyses revealed an association between non-B variants, which are not established in the local population yet, and different foreign groups.

  5. Manufacturing immunity to disease in a test tube: the magic bullet realized.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lerner, Richard A

    2006-12-11

    Although it took over one hundred years, Ehrlich's concept of the magic bullet is now a reality. Today, therapeutic antibodies are, arguably, the most important class of new drugs for the treatment of illnesses ranging from Alzheimer's disease to cancer. The emergence of therapeutic antibodies had to wait for advances in immunochemistry that allowed construction of antibodies in vitro. The centerpiece of the new technology is the combinatorial antibody library, which essentially allows one to synthesize an artificial immune system with a diversity that exceeds that of the natural repertoire. The construction of such libraries was perceived to be difficult because, if the natural immune system was to be used as the starting material, construction of the libraries would entail protocols that are the opposite of usual cloning. In gene cloning one starts with complexity and reduces it to a singularity. In the generation of diversity by construction of combinatorial antibody libraries, one starts with a collection of clones, randomly expands their complexity, and then returns them to recoverable singularities. The methods developed to accomplish this seemingly formidable task now allow construction of antibodies in a test tube to any antigen. These synthetic antibodies may be qualitatively and quantitatively superior to those of nature.

  6. Increasing Small Arms Lethality in Afghanistan Taking Back the Infantry Half-Kilometer

    Science.gov (United States)

    2009-05-21

    John A. Malinowski , and Robert E. Bowen. "Bullet Fragmentation: A Major Cause of Tissue Disruption." JTrauma, 1984: 35-39. 67 Initial muzzle...Fackler, Martin L, M.D., M.A. John S. Surinchak, B.S. John A. Malinowski , and Robert E. Bowen. "Bullet Fragmentation: A Major Cause of Tissue

  7. Ground state structures and properties of Si3Hn (n= 1–6) clusters

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    The ground state structures and properties of Si3H (1 ≤ ≤ 6) clusters have been calculated using Car–Parrinello molecular dynamics with simulated annealing and steepest descent optimization methods. We have studied cohesive energy per particle and first excited electronic level gap of the clusters as a function of ...

  8. Ckmeans.1d.dp: Optimal k-means Clustering in One Dimension by Dynamic Programming.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Haizhou; Song, Mingzhou

    2011-12-01

    The heuristic k -means algorithm, widely used for cluster analysis, does not guarantee optimality. We developed a dynamic programming algorithm for optimal one-dimensional clustering. The algorithm is implemented as an R package called Ckmeans.1d.dp . We demonstrate its advantage in optimality and runtime over the standard iterative k -means algorithm.

  9. Admixtures of shell and cluster states in 18F

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sakuda, Toshimi; Nemoto, Fumiki; Nagata, Sinobu.

    1976-01-01

    The properties of the low-lying T=0 positive-parity levels in 18 F are shown to be well understood by considering admixtures of 2p shell-model states and ''4p-2h'' states with alpha-cluster structures. In order to represent the ''4p-2h'' states, α- 14 N cluster model is introduced. By this model, weak coupling features and coupling between shell and cluster states are well described. The binding energies of the ground 1 + and the lowest 3 + levels are reproduced by the couplings with the ''4p-2h'' cluster states. On the other hand, weak coupling features of ''4p-2h'' cluster states are disturbed to some extent. As a result, the energy spectrum, E2-transition rates and reduced α-widths of all T=0 positive-parity levels below 7 MeV excitation energy are systematically reproduced. (auth.)

  10. Visualizing Confidence in Cluster-Based Ensemble Weather Forecast Analyses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumpf, Alexander; Tost, Bianca; Baumgart, Marlene; Riemer, Michael; Westermann, Rudiger; Rautenhaus, Marc

    2018-01-01

    In meteorology, cluster analysis is frequently used to determine representative trends in ensemble weather predictions in a selected spatio-temporal region, e.g., to reduce a set of ensemble members to simplify and improve their analysis. Identified clusters (i.e., groups of similar members), however, can be very sensitive to small changes of the selected region, so that clustering results can be misleading and bias subsequent analyses. In this article, we - a team of visualization scientists and meteorologists-deliver visual analytics solutions to analyze the sensitivity of clustering results with respect to changes of a selected region. We propose an interactive visual interface that enables simultaneous visualization of a) the variation in composition of identified clusters (i.e., their robustness), b) the variability in cluster membership for individual ensemble members, and c) the uncertainty in the spatial locations of identified trends. We demonstrate that our solution shows meteorologists how representative a clustering result is, and with respect to which changes in the selected region it becomes unstable. Furthermore, our solution helps to identify those ensemble members which stably belong to a given cluster and can thus be considered similar. In a real-world application case we show how our approach is used to analyze the clustering behavior of different regions in a forecast of "Tropical Cyclone Karl", guiding the user towards the cluster robustness information required for subsequent ensemble analysis.

  11. Clustering Coefficients for Correlation Networks

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Naoki Masuda

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Graph theory is a useful tool for deciphering structural and functional networks of the brain on various spatial and temporal scales. The clustering coefficient quantifies the abundance of connected triangles in a network and is a major descriptive statistics of networks. For example, it finds an application in the assessment of small-worldness of brain networks, which is affected by attentional and cognitive conditions, age, psychiatric disorders and so forth. However, it remains unclear how the clustering coefficient should be measured in a correlation-based network, which is among major representations of brain networks. In the present article, we propose clustering coefficients tailored to correlation matrices. The key idea is to use three-way partial correlation or partial mutual information to measure the strength of the association between the two neighboring nodes of a focal node relative to the amount of pseudo-correlation expected from indirect paths between the nodes. Our method avoids the difficulties of previous applications of clustering coefficient (and other measures in defining correlational networks, i.e., thresholding on the correlation value, discarding of negative correlation values, the pseudo-correlation problem and full partial correlation matrices whose estimation is computationally difficult. For proof of concept, we apply the proposed clustering coefficient measures to functional magnetic resonance imaging data obtained from healthy participants of various ages and compare them with conventional clustering coefficients. We show that the clustering coefficients decline with the age. The proposed clustering coefficients are more strongly correlated with age than the conventional ones are. We also show that the local variants of the proposed clustering coefficients (i.e., abundance of triangles around a focal node are useful in characterizing individual nodes. In contrast, the conventional local clustering coefficients

  12. Clustering Coefficients for Correlation Networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masuda, Naoki; Sakaki, Michiko; Ezaki, Takahiro; Watanabe, Takamitsu

    2018-01-01

    Graph theory is a useful tool for deciphering structural and functional networks of the brain on various spatial and temporal scales. The clustering coefficient quantifies the abundance of connected triangles in a network and is a major descriptive statistics of networks. For example, it finds an application in the assessment of small-worldness of brain networks, which is affected by attentional and cognitive conditions, age, psychiatric disorders and so forth. However, it remains unclear how the clustering coefficient should be measured in a correlation-based network, which is among major representations of brain networks. In the present article, we propose clustering coefficients tailored to correlation matrices. The key idea is to use three-way partial correlation or partial mutual information to measure the strength of the association between the two neighboring nodes of a focal node relative to the amount of pseudo-correlation expected from indirect paths between the nodes. Our method avoids the difficulties of previous applications of clustering coefficient (and other) measures in defining correlational networks, i.e., thresholding on the correlation value, discarding of negative correlation values, the pseudo-correlation problem and full partial correlation matrices whose estimation is computationally difficult. For proof of concept, we apply the proposed clustering coefficient measures to functional magnetic resonance imaging data obtained from healthy participants of various ages and compare them with conventional clustering coefficients. We show that the clustering coefficients decline with the age. The proposed clustering coefficients are more strongly correlated with age than the conventional ones are. We also show that the local variants of the proposed clustering coefficients (i.e., abundance of triangles around a focal node) are useful in characterizing individual nodes. In contrast, the conventional local clustering coefficients were strongly

  13. Clustering Coefficients for Correlation Networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masuda, Naoki; Sakaki, Michiko; Ezaki, Takahiro; Watanabe, Takamitsu

    2018-01-01

    Graph theory is a useful tool for deciphering structural and functional networks of the brain on various spatial and temporal scales. The clustering coefficient quantifies the abundance of connected triangles in a network and is a major descriptive statistics of networks. For example, it finds an application in the assessment of small-worldness of brain networks, which is affected by attentional and cognitive conditions, age, psychiatric disorders and so forth. However, it remains unclear how the clustering coefficient should be measured in a correlation-based network, which is among major representations of brain networks. In the present article, we propose clustering coefficients tailored to correlation matrices. The key idea is to use three-way partial correlation or partial mutual information to measure the strength of the association between the two neighboring nodes of a focal node relative to the amount of pseudo-correlation expected from indirect paths between the nodes. Our method avoids the difficulties of previous applications of clustering coefficient (and other) measures in defining correlational networks, i.e., thresholding on the correlation value, discarding of negative correlation values, the pseudo-correlation problem and full partial correlation matrices whose estimation is computationally difficult. For proof of concept, we apply the proposed clustering coefficient measures to functional magnetic resonance imaging data obtained from healthy participants of various ages and compare them with conventional clustering coefficients. We show that the clustering coefficients decline with the age. The proposed clustering coefficients are more strongly correlated with age than the conventional ones are. We also show that the local variants of the proposed clustering coefficients (i.e., abundance of triangles around a focal node) are useful in characterizing individual nodes. In contrast, the conventional local clustering coefficients were strongly

  14. Analysis of Network Clustering Algorithms and Cluster Quality Metrics at Scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Emmons, Scott; Kobourov, Stephen; Gallant, Mike; Börner, Katy

    2016-01-01

    Notions of community quality underlie the clustering of networks. While studies surrounding network clustering are increasingly common, a precise understanding of the realtionship between different cluster quality metrics is unknown. In this paper, we examine the relationship between stand-alone cluster quality metrics and information recovery metrics through a rigorous analysis of four widely-used network clustering algorithms-Louvain, Infomap, label propagation, and smart local moving. We consider the stand-alone quality metrics of modularity, conductance, and coverage, and we consider the information recovery metrics of adjusted Rand score, normalized mutual information, and a variant of normalized mutual information used in previous work. Our study includes both synthetic graphs and empirical data sets of sizes varying from 1,000 to 1,000,000 nodes. We find significant differences among the results of the different cluster quality metrics. For example, clustering algorithms can return a value of 0.4 out of 1 on modularity but score 0 out of 1 on information recovery. We find conductance, though imperfect, to be the stand-alone quality metric that best indicates performance on the information recovery metrics. Additionally, our study shows that the variant of normalized mutual information used in previous work cannot be assumed to differ only slightly from traditional normalized mutual information. Smart local moving is the overall best performing algorithm in our study, but discrepancies between cluster evaluation metrics prevent us from declaring it an absolutely superior algorithm. Interestingly, Louvain performed better than Infomap in nearly all the tests in our study, contradicting the results of previous work in which Infomap was superior to Louvain. We find that although label propagation performs poorly when clusters are less clearly defined, it scales efficiently and accurately to large graphs with well-defined clusters.

  15. Mouse Nkrp1-Clr gene cluster sequence and expression analyses reveal conservation of tissue-specific MHC-independent immunosurveillance.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qiang Zhang

    Full Text Available The Nkrp1 (Klrb1-Clr (Clec2 genes encode a receptor-ligand system utilized by NK cells as an MHC-independent immunosurveillance strategy for innate immune responses. The related Ly49 family of MHC-I receptors displays extreme allelic polymorphism and haplotype plasticity. In contrast, previous BAC-mapping and aCGH studies in the mouse suggest the neighboring and related Nkrp1-Clr cluster is evolutionarily stable. To definitively compare the relative evolutionary rate of Nkrp1-Clr vs. Ly49 gene clusters, the Nkrp1-Clr gene clusters from two Ly49 haplotype-disparate inbred mouse strains, BALB/c and 129S6, were sequenced. Both Nkrp1-Clr gene cluster sequences are highly similar to the C57BL/6 reference sequence, displaying the same gene numbers and order, complete pseudogenes, and gene fragments. The Nkrp1-Clr clusters contain a strikingly dissimilar proportion of repetitive elements compared to the Ly49 clusters, suggesting that certain elements may be partly responsible for the highly disparate Ly49 vs. Nkrp1 evolutionary rate. Focused allelic polymorphisms were found within the Nkrp1b/d (Klrb1b, Nkrp1c (Klrb1c, and Clr-c (Clec2f genes, suggestive of possible immune selection. Cell-type specific transcription of Nkrp1-Clr genes in a large panel of tissues/organs was determined. Clr-b (Clec2d and Clr-g (Clec2i showed wide expression, while other Clr genes showed more tissue-specific expression patterns. In situ hybridization revealed specific expression of various members of the Clr family in leukocytes/hematopoietic cells of immune organs, various tissue-restricted epithelial cells (including intestinal, kidney tubular, lung, and corneal progenitor epithelial cells, as well as myocytes. In summary, the Nkrp1-Clr gene cluster appears to evolve more slowly relative to the related Ly49 cluster, and likely regulates innate immunosurveillance in a tissue-specific manner.

  16. Cerebrospinal fluid hypocretin-1 levels during the active period of cluster headache.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cevoli, Sabina; Pizza, Fabio; Grimaldi, Daniela; Nicodemo, Marianna; Favoni, Valentina; Pierangeli, Giulia; Valko, Philipp O; Baumann, Christian R; Montagna, Pasquale; Bassetti, Claudio L; Cortelli, Pietro

    2011-06-01

    Hypocretins (orexins) are hypothalamic neuropeptides which are involved in a wide range of physiological processes in mammals including central pain processing. Genetic studies in humans evidenced a role for the hypocretinergic system in cluster headache (CH). We tested cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) hypocretin-1 (orexin-A) levels in 10 CH patients during an active cluster period. CSF hypocretin-1 levels were measured by radioimmunoassay. CSF hypocretin-1 levels were within the normal range (mean 457.3±104.98 pg/ml, range 304-639) in our 10 patients, with a slight reduction in one case (304 pg/ml). There were no associations between CSF hypocretin-1 levels and the clinical features of CH. A trend towards higher hypocretin-1 levels was disclosed in patients with chronic CH compared to episodic CH. CSF hypocretin-1 levels seem not to influence the clinical course of CH, but our results cannot completely exclude a functional involvement of the hypothalamic hypocretinergic system in the pathogenesis of CH.

  17. Stability analysis and structural rules of titanium dioxide clusters (TiO2)n with n = 1-9

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Weiwei; Han Ye; Yao Shuyu; Sun Haiqing

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: · We investigated the structure and stability of (TiO 2 ) n clusters with n = 1-9. · Some initial structures are introduced and proved to be the real global minimum. · We summarized the structural rules for small (TiO 2 ) n clusters. · The bonding features for the energy increment or decrement of the clusters are investigated. · A general shift of stability and reactivity with size for (TiO 2 ) n clusters. - Abstract: Atomic clusters have been considered as models for fundamental mechanistic insight into complex surfaces and catalysts. The structure and stability of (TiO 2 ) n clusters with n = 1-9 are investigated using the b3lyp hybrid density functional method in this paper. Some of the clusters are proposed initially and proved to be the real global minima. The stability and band gap of the clusters as a function of size are also investigated. The structural rules of the clusters are first summarized. The lowest-lying (TiO 2 ) n isomers tend to form some compact rather than quasi-linear or circular structures. The oxygen atom in 4-fold coordination and the titanium atom in 4-fold coordination favor the cluster stability. The 5-fold coordinated Ti-atom, the Ti-Ti bond and the terminal Ti-O bond lead to stability penalty for the clusters. No evidence for a regular variation in stability or reactivity with size of the clusters has shown. The structural rules can serve as guiding factors for formation research and structure design of (TiO 2 ) n and other transition metal oxide clusters.

  18. Phenotypes Determined by Cluster Analysis in Moderate to Severe Bronchial Asthma.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Youroukova, Vania M; Dimitrova, Denitsa G; Valerieva, Anna D; Lesichkova, Spaska S; Velikova, Tsvetelina V; Ivanova-Todorova, Ekaterina I; Tumangelova-Yuzeir, Kalina D

    2017-06-01

    Bronchial asthma is a heterogeneous disease that includes various subtypes. They may share similar clinical characteristics, but probably have different pathological mechanisms. To identify phenotypes using cluster analysis in moderate to severe bronchial asthma and to compare differences in clinical, physiological, immunological and inflammatory data between the clusters. Forty adult patients with moderate to severe bronchial asthma out of exacerbation were included. All underwent clinical assessment, anthropometric measurements, skin prick testing, standard spirometry and measurement fraction of exhaled nitric oxide. Blood eosinophilic count, serum total IgE and periostin levels were determined. Two-step cluster approach, hierarchical clustering method and k-mean analysis were used for identification of the clusters. We have identified four clusters. Cluster 1 (n=14) - late-onset, non-atopic asthma with impaired lung function, Cluster 2 (n=13) - late-onset, atopic asthma, Cluster 3 (n=6) - late-onset, aspirin sensitivity, eosinophilic asthma, and Cluster 4 (n=7) - early-onset, atopic asthma. Our study is the first in Bulgaria in which cluster analysis is applied to asthmatic patients. We identified four clusters. The variables with greatest force for differentiation in our study were: age of asthma onset, duration of diseases, atopy, smoking, blood eosinophils, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs hypersensitivity, baseline FEV1/FVC and symptoms severity. Our results support the concept of heterogeneity of bronchial asthma and demonstrate that cluster analysis can be an useful tool for phenotyping of disease and personalized approach to the treatment of patients.

  19. Targeting the latest hallmark of cancer: another attempt at 'magic bullet' drugs targeting cancers' metabolic phenotype.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cuperlovic-Culf, M; Culf, A S; Touaibia, M; Lefort, N

    2012-10-01

    The metabolism of tumors is remarkably different from the metabolism of corresponding normal cells and tissues. Metabolic alterations are initiated by oncogenes and are required for malignant transformation, allowing cancer cells to resist some cell death signals while producing energy and fulfilling their biosynthetic needs with limiting resources. The distinct metabolic phenotype of cancers provides an interesting avenue for treatment, potentially with minimal side effects. As many cancers show similar metabolic characteristics, drugs targeting the cancer metabolic phenotype are, perhaps optimistically, expected to be 'magic bullet' treatments. Over the last few years there have been a number of potential drugs developed to specifically target cancer metabolism. Several of these drugs are currently in clinical and preclinical trials. This review outlines examples of drugs developed for different targets of significance to cancer metabolism, with a focus on small molecule leads, chemical biology and clinical results for these drugs.

  20. Structure and stability of small Li2 +(X2Σ+ g )-Xen (n = 1-6) clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saidi, Sameh; Ghanmi, Chedli; Berriche, Hamid

    2014-04-01

    We have studied the structure and stability of the Li2 +(X2Σ+ g )Xe n ( n = 1-6) clusters for special symmetry groups. The potential energy surfaces of these clusters, are described using an accurate ab initio approach based on non-empirical pseudopotential, parameterized l-dependent polarization potential and analytic potential forms for the Li+Xe and Xe-Xe interactions. The pseudopotential technique has reduced the number of active electrons of Li2 +(X2Σ+ g )-Xe n ( n = 1-6) clusters to only one electron, the Li valence electron. The core-core interactions for Li+Xe are included using accurate CCSD(T) potential fitted using the analytical form of Tang and Toennies. For the Xe-Xe potential interactions we have used the analytical form of Lennard Jones (LJ6 - 12). The potential energy surfaces of the Li2 +(X2Σ+ g )Xe n ( n = 1-6) clusters are performed for a fixed distance of the Li2 +(X2Σ+ g ) alkali dimer, its equilibrium distance. They are used to extract information on the stability of the Li2 +(X2Σ+ g Xe n ( n = 1-6) clusters. For each n, the stability of the different isomers is examined by comparing their potential energy surfaces. Moreover, we have determined the quantum energies ( D 0), the zero-point-energies (ZPE) and the ZPE%. To our best knowledge, there are neither experimental nor theoretical works realized for the Li2 +(X2Σ+ g Xe n ( n = 1-6) clusters, our results are presented for the first time.

  1. Interstellar Extinction in 20 Open Star Clusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rangwal, Geeta; Yadav, R. K. S.; Durgapal, Alok K.; Bisht, D.

    2017-12-01

    The interstellar extinction law in 20 open star clusters namely, Berkeley 7, Collinder 69, Hogg 10, NGC 2362, Czernik 43, NGC 6530, NGC 6871, Bochum 10, Haffner 18, IC 4996, NGC 2384, NGC 6193, NGC 6618, NGC 7160, Collinder 232, Haffner 19, NGC 2401, NGC 6231, NGC 6823, and NGC 7380 have been studied in the optical and near-IR wavelength ranges. The difference between maximum and minimum values of E(B - V) indicates the presence of non-uniform extinction in all the clusters except Collinder 69, NGC 2362, and NGC 2384. The colour excess ratios are consistent with a normal extinction law for the clusters NGC 6823, Haffner 18, Haffner 19, NGC 7160, NGC 6193, NGC 2401, NGC 2384, NGC 6871, NGC 7380, Berkeley 7, Collinder 69, and IC 4996. We have found that the differential colour-excess ΔE(B - V), which may be due to the occurrence of dust and gas inside the clusters, decreases with the age of the clusters. A spatial variation of colour excess is found in NGC 6193 in the sense that it decreases from east to west in the cluster region. For the clusters Berkeley 7, NGC 7380, and NGC 6871, a dependence of colour excess E(B - V) with spectral class and luminosity is observed. Eight stars in Collinder 232, four stars in NGC 6530, and one star in NGC 6231 have excess flux in near-IR. This indicates that these stars may have circumstellar material around them.

  2. Identification of a large, fast-expanding HIV-1 subtype B transmission cluster among MSM in Valencia, Spain.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Juan Ángel Patiño-Galindo

    Full Text Available We describe and characterize an exceptionally large HIV-1 subtype B transmission cluster occurring in the Comunidad Valenciana (CV, Spain. A total of 1806 HIV-1 protease-reverse transcriptase (PR/RT sequences from different patients were obtained in the CV between 2004 and 2014. After subtyping and generating a phylogenetic tree with additional HIV-1 subtype B sequences, a very large transmission cluster which included almost exclusively sequences from the CV was detected (n = 143 patients. This cluster was then validated and characterized with further maximum-likelihood phylogenetic analyses and Bayesian coalescent reconstructions. With these analyses, the CV cluster was delimited to 113 patients, predominately men who have sex with men (MSM. Although it was significantly located in the city of Valencia (n = 105, phylogenetic analyses suggested this cluster derives from a larger HIV lineage affecting other Spanish localities (n = 194. Coalescent analyses estimated its expansion in Valencia to have started between 1998 and 2004. From 2004 to 2009, members of this cluster represented only 1.46% of the HIV-1 subtype B samples studied in Valencia (n = 5/143, whereas from 2010 onwards its prevalence raised to 12.64% (n = 100/791. In conclusion, we have detected a very large transmission cluster in the CV where it has experienced a very fast growth in the recent years in the city of Valencia, thus contributing significantly to the HIV epidemic in this locality. Its transmission efficiency evidences shortcomings in HIV control measures in Spain and particularly in Valencia.

  3. Identification of a large, fast-expanding HIV-1 subtype B transmission cluster among MSM in Valencia, Spain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Patiño-Galindo, Juan Ángel; Torres-Puente, Manoli; Bracho, María Alma; Alastrué, Ignacio; Juan, Amparo; Navarro, David; Galindo, María José; Gimeno, Concepción; Ortega, Enrique; González-Candelas, Fernando

    2017-01-01

    We describe and characterize an exceptionally large HIV-1 subtype B transmission cluster occurring in the Comunidad Valenciana (CV, Spain). A total of 1806 HIV-1 protease-reverse transcriptase (PR/RT) sequences from different patients were obtained in the CV between 2004 and 2014. After subtyping and generating a phylogenetic tree with additional HIV-1 subtype B sequences, a very large transmission cluster which included almost exclusively sequences from the CV was detected (n = 143 patients). This cluster was then validated and characterized with further maximum-likelihood phylogenetic analyses and Bayesian coalescent reconstructions. With these analyses, the CV cluster was delimited to 113 patients, predominately men who have sex with men (MSM). Although it was significantly located in the city of Valencia (n = 105), phylogenetic analyses suggested this cluster derives from a larger HIV lineage affecting other Spanish localities (n = 194). Coalescent analyses estimated its expansion in Valencia to have started between 1998 and 2004. From 2004 to 2009, members of this cluster represented only 1.46% of the HIV-1 subtype B samples studied in Valencia (n = 5/143), whereas from 2010 onwards its prevalence raised to 12.64% (n = 100/791). In conclusion, we have detected a very large transmission cluster in the CV where it has experienced a very fast growth in the recent years in the city of Valencia, thus contributing significantly to the HIV epidemic in this locality. Its transmission efficiency evidences shortcomings in HIV control measures in Spain and particularly in Valencia.

  4. Dynamics and Fragmentation of Hydrogen Bonded and van der Waal Clusters upon 26.5 eV Soft X-ray Laser Ionization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, Feng; Heinbuch, Scott; Bernstein, Elliot; Rocca, Jorge

    2006-05-01

    A desk-top soft x-ray laser is applied to the study of water, methanol, ammonia, sulfur dioxide, carbon dioxide, mixed sulfur dioxide-water, and mixed carbon dioxide-water clusters through single photon ionization time of flight mass spectroscopy. Almost all of the energy above the vertical ionization energy is removed by the ejected electron. Protonated water, methanol, and ammonia clusters dominate the mass spectra for the first three systems. The temperatures of the neutral water and methanol clusters can be estimated. In the case of pure SO2 and CO2, the mass spectra are dominated by (SO2)n^+ and (CO2)n^+ cluster series. When a high or low concentration of SO2/CO2 is mixed with water, we observe (SO2/CO2)nH2O^+ or SO2/CO2(H2O)nH^+ in the mass spectra, respectively. The unimolecular dissociation rate constants for reactions involving loss of one neutral molecule are calculated for the protonated water, methanol, and ammonia clusters as well as for SO2 and CO2 clusters. We find that the 26.5 eV soft x-ray laser is a nearly ideal tool for the study of hydrogen bonded and van der Waals cluster systems and we are currently exploring its usefulness for other more strongly bound systems.

  5. THE ABSENCE OF RADIO EMISSION FROM THE GLOBULAR CLUSTER G1

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Miller-Jones, J. C. A. [International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research, Curtin University, GPO Box U1987, Perth, WA 6845 (Australia); Wrobel, J. M. [NRAO Domenici Science Operations Center, 1003 Lopezville Road, Socorro, NM 87801 (United States); Sivakoff, G. R.; Heinke, C. O.; Miller, R. E. [Department of Physics, University of Alberta, Room 238 CEB, Edmonton, AB T6G 2G7 (Canada); Plotkin, R. M. [Astronomical Institute ' Anton Pannekoek' , University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098 XH Amsterdam (Netherlands); Di Stefano, R. [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Greene, J. E. [Department of Astronomy, University of Texas at Austin, 1 University Station C1400, Austin, TX 71712 (United States); Ho, L. C. [The Observatories of the Carnegie Institution for Science, 813 Santa Barbara Street, Pasadena, CA 91101 (United States); Joseph, T. D.; Maccarone, T. J. [School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southampton, Highfield SO17 IBJ (United Kingdom); Kong, A. K. H., E-mail: james.miller-jones@curtin.edu.au [Institute of Astronomy and Department of Physics, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan (China)

    2012-08-10

    The detections of both X-ray and radio emission from the cluster G1 in M31 have provided strong support for existing dynamical evidence for an intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH) of mass (1.8 {+-} 0.5) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 4} M{sub Sun} at the cluster center. However, given the relatively low significance and astrometric accuracy of the radio detection, and the non-simultaneity of the X-ray and radio measurements, this identification required further confirmation. Here we present deep, high angular resolution, strictly simultaneous X-ray and radio observations of G1. While the X-ray emission (L{sub X} = 1.74{sup +0.53}{sub -0.44} Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 36} (d/750 kpc){sup 2} erg s{sup -1} in the 0.5-10 keV band) remained fully consistent with previous observations, we detected no radio emission from the cluster center down to a 3{sigma} upper limit of 4.7 {mu}Jy beam{sup -1}. Our favored explanation for the previous radio detection is flaring activity from a black hole low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB). We performed a new regression of the 'Fundamental Plane' of black hole activity, valid for determining black hole mass from radio and X-ray observations of sub-Eddington black holes, finding log M{sub BH} = (1.638 {+-} 0.070)log L{sub R} - (1.136 {+-} 0.077)log L{sub X} - (6.863 {+-} 0.790), with an empirically determined uncertainty of 0.44 dex. This constrains the mass of the X-ray source in G1, if a black hole, to be <9.7 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 3} M{sub Sun} at 95% confidence, suggesting that it is a persistent LMXB. This annuls what was previously the most convincing evidence from radiation for an IMBH in the Local Group, though the evidence for an IMBH in G1 from velocity dispersion measurements remains unaffected by these results.

  6. The N-terminal domain of human DNA helicase Rtel1 contains a redox active iron-sulfur cluster.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Landry, Aaron P; Ding, Huangen

    2014-01-01

    Human telomere length regulator Rtel1 is a superfamily II DNA helicase and is essential for maintaining proper length of telomeres in chromosomes. Here we report that the N-terminal domain of human Rtel1 (RtelN) expressed in Escherichia coli cells produces a protein that contains a redox active iron-sulfur cluster with the redox midpoint potential of -248 ± 10 mV (pH 8.0). The iron-sulfur cluster in RtelN is sensitive to hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide, indicating that reactive oxygen/nitrogen species may modulate the DNA helicase activity of Rtel1 via modification of its iron-sulfur cluster. Purified RtelN retains a weak binding affinity for the single-stranded (ss) and double-stranded (ds) DNA in vitro. However, modification of the iron-sulfur cluster by hydrogen peroxide or nitric oxide does not significantly affect the DNA binding activity of RtelN, suggesting that the iron-sulfur cluster is not directly involved in the DNA interaction in the N-terminal domain of Rtel1.

  7. The N-Terminal Domain of Human DNA Helicase Rtel1 Contains a Redox Active Iron-Sulfur Cluster

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aaron P. Landry

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Human telomere length regulator Rtel1 is a superfamily II DNA helicase and is essential for maintaining proper length of telomeres in chromosomes. Here we report that the N-terminal domain of human Rtel1 (RtelN expressed in Escherichia coli cells produces a protein that contains a redox active iron-sulfur cluster with the redox midpoint potential of −248 ± 10 mV (pH 8.0. The iron-sulfur cluster in RtelN is sensitive to hydrogen peroxide and nitric oxide, indicating that reactive oxygen/nitrogen species may modulate the DNA helicase activity of Rtel1 via modification of its iron-sulfur cluster. Purified RtelN retains a weak binding affinity for the single-stranded (ss and double-stranded (ds DNA in vitro. However, modification of the iron-sulfur cluster by hydrogen peroxide or nitric oxide does not significantly affect the DNA binding activity of RtelN, suggesting that the iron-sulfur cluster is not directly involved in the DNA interaction in the N-terminal domain of Rtel1.

  8. A NEW DISTANT MILKY WAY GLOBULAR CLUSTER IN THE PAN-STARRS1 3π SURVEY

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Laevens, Benjamin P. M.; Martin, Nicolas F.; Sesar, Branimir; Rix, Hans-Walter; Schlafly, Edward F.; Bernard, Edouard J.; Ferguson, Annette M. N.; Slater, Colin T.; Bell, Eric F.; Burgett, William S.; Chambers, Kenneth C.; Denneau, Larry; Kaiser, Nicholas; Kudritzki, Rolf-Peter; Magnier, Eugene A.; Morgan, Jeffrey S.; Sweeney, William E.; Draper, Peter W.; Metcalfe, Nigel; Price, Paul A.

    2014-01-01

    We present a new satellite in the outer halo of the Galaxy, the first Milky Way satellite found in the stacked photometric catalog of the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System 1 (Pan-STARRS1) Survey. From follow-up photometry obtained with WFI on the MPG/ESO 2.2 m telescope, we argue that the object, located at a heliocentric distance of 145 ± 17 kpc, is the most distant Milky Way globular cluster yet known. With a total magnitude of M V = –4.3 ± 0.2 and a half-light radius of 20 ± 2 pc, it shares the properties of extended globular clusters found in the outer halo of our Galaxy and the Andromeda galaxy. The discovery of this distant cluster shows that the full spatial extent of the Milky Way globular cluster system has not yet been fully explored

  9. Measurement of 15 MeV gamma-rays with the Ge cluster detectors of EUROBALL

    CERN Document Server

    Million, B; Camera, F; Brambilla, S; Gadea, A; Giugni, D; Herskind, B; Kmiecik, M; Isocrate, R; Leoni, S; Maj, A; Prelz, F; Wieland, O

    2000-01-01

    A measurement of the response to 15.1 MeV gamma-rays has been made for the Ge cluster detectors in the EUROBALL array. Each cluster detector consists of seven germanium capsules surrounded by a single anticompton shield of BGO. The reaction D( sup 1 sup 1 B,gamma) sup 1 sup 2 C+n at E sub b sub e sub a sub m =19.1 MeV has been employed. The 'adding-back' of signals simultaneously present in the capsules composing each cluster detector has been made on an event by event basis. The intensity in full-energy peak increases by a factor of three as compared to that of the spectrum obtained by summing the individual spectra of the 7 capsules. The pulse height to energy conversion is found to be very linear from few hundreds keV to 15 MeV. The efficiency is discussed relative to that of large volume BaF sub 2 scintillators.

  10. Association of Intact dupA (dupA1) rather than dupA1 cluster with duodenal ulcer in Indian population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alam, Jawed; Ghosh, Prachetash; Ganguly, Mou; Sarkar, Avijit; De, Ronita; Mukhopadhyay, Asish K

    2015-01-01

    The duodenal ulcer promoting gene (dupA) and dupA cluster in Helicobacter pylori have been described as a risk factor for duodenal ulcer development in some populations. Polymorphic gene dupA can be divided into two groups, intact dupA1 (long or short type based on the presence or absence of 615-bp extra sequences at the 5' region) having complete reading frame and other truncated dupA2 having frame-shift mutation. This study was aimed to elucidate the role of dupA of H. pylori and their clusters in the disease manifestation of Indian population. A total of 170 H. pylori strains were screened for the presence of dupA, dupA alleles and dupA cluster by PCR and sequencing. Pro-inflammatory cytokine (IL-8) with different dupA variant H. pylori stimulated gastric epithelial cells (AGS cells) was measured by ELISA. A total of 50 strains (29.4%) were positive for dupA among the tested 170 strains. The prevalence of dupA1 in duodenal ulcer (DU) and non-ulcer dyspepsia (NUD) populations was found to be 25.5% (25/98) and 11.1% (8/72), respectively and 16.4% (28/170) of the tested strains had dupA1, cagA and vacAs1m1 positive. The distribution of long and short type dupA1 has not been significantly associated with the disease outcome. The dupA cluster analysis showed that 10.2% (10/98) and 8.3% (6/72) strains were positive among DU and NUD, respectively. IL-8 production was significantly higher in dupA1(+) , cagA (+), vacA (+) (902.5 ± 79.01 pg/mL) than dupA2 (+) , cagA (+) , vacA (+) (536.0 ± 100.4 pg/mL, P = 0.008) and dupA (-), cagA (+), vacA (+) (549.7 ± 104.1 pg/mL, P = 0.009). Phylogenetic analysis of dupA indicated that the Indian H. pylori strains clustered with East Asian strains but distinct from Western strains. This is the first known genetic element of Indian H. pylori that is genetically closer to the East Asian strains but differed from the Western strains. The intact dupA1 was significantly associated with DU than NUD (P = 0

  11. A hybrid clustering approach to recognition of protein families in 114 microbial genomes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gogarten J Peter

    2004-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Grouping proteins into sequence-based clusters is a fundamental step in many bioinformatic analyses (e.g., homology-based prediction of structure or function. Standard clustering methods such as single-linkage clustering capture a history of cluster topologies as a function of threshold, but in practice their usefulness is limited because unrelated sequences join clusters before biologically meaningful families are fully constituted, e.g. as the result of matches to so-called promiscuous domains. Use of the Markov Cluster algorithm avoids this non-specificity, but does not preserve topological or threshold information about protein families. Results We describe a hybrid approach to sequence-based clustering of proteins that combines the advantages of standard and Markov clustering. We have implemented this hybrid approach over a relational database environment, and describe its application to clustering a large subset of PDB, and to 328577 proteins from 114 fully sequenced microbial genomes. To demonstrate utility with difficult problems, we show that hybrid clustering allows us to constitute the paralogous family of ATP synthase F1 rotary motor subunits into a single, biologically interpretable hierarchical grouping that was not accessible using either single-linkage or Markov clustering alone. We describe validation of this method by hybrid clustering of PDB and mapping SCOP families and domains onto the resulting clusters. Conclusion Hybrid (Markov followed by single-linkage clustering combines the advantages of the Markov Cluster algorithm (avoidance of non-specific clusters resulting from matches to promiscuous domains and single-linkage clustering (preservation of topological information as a function of threshold. Within the individual Markov clusters, single-linkage clustering is a more-precise instrument, discerning sub-clusters of biological relevance. Our hybrid approach thus provides a computationally efficient

  12. How to detect trap cluster systems?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mandowski, Arkadiusz

    2008-01-01

    Spatially correlated traps and recombination centres (trap-recombination centre pairs and larger clusters) are responsible for many anomalous phenomena that are difficult to explain in the framework of both classical models, i.e. model of localized transitions (LT) and the simple trap model (STM), even with a number of discrete energy levels. However, these 'anomalous' effects may provide a good platform for identifying trap cluster systems. This paper considers selected cluster-type effects, mainly relating to an anomalous dependence of TL on absorbed dose in the system of isolated clusters (ICs). Some consequences for interacting cluster (IAC) systems, involving both localized and delocalized transitions occurring simultaneously, are also discussed

  13. Molecular dynamics simulations of sputtering of organic overlayers by slow, large clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rzeznik, L.; Czerwinski, B.; Garrison, B.J.; Winograd, N.; Postawa, Z.

    2008-01-01

    The ion-stimulated desorption of organic molecules by impact of large and slow clusters is examined using molecular dynamics (MDs) computer simulations. The investigated system, represented by a monolayer of benzene deposited on Ag{1 1 1}, is irradiated with projectiles composed of thousands of noble gas atoms having a kinetic energy of 0.1-20 eV/atom. The sputtering yield of molecular species and the kinetic energy distributions are analyzed and compared to the results obtain for PS4 overlayer. The simulations demonstrate quite clearly that the physics of ejection by large and slow clusters is distinct from the ejection events stimulated by the popular SIMS clusters, like C 60 , Au 3 and SF 5 at tens of keV energies.

  14. Adaptive Scaling of Cluster Boundaries for Large-Scale Social Media Data Clustering.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meng, Lei; Tan, Ah-Hwee; Wunsch, Donald C

    2016-12-01

    The large scale and complex nature of social media data raises the need to scale clustering techniques to big data and make them capable of automatically identifying data clusters with few empirical settings. In this paper, we present our investigation and three algorithms based on the fuzzy adaptive resonance theory (Fuzzy ART) that have linear computational complexity, use a single parameter, i.e., the vigilance parameter to identify data clusters, and are robust to modest parameter settings. The contribution of this paper lies in two aspects. First, we theoretically demonstrate how complement coding, commonly known as a normalization method, changes the clustering mechanism of Fuzzy ART, and discover the vigilance region (VR) that essentially determines how a cluster in the Fuzzy ART system recognizes similar patterns in the feature space. The VR gives an intrinsic interpretation of the clustering mechanism and limitations of Fuzzy ART. Second, we introduce the idea of allowing different clusters in the Fuzzy ART system to have different vigilance levels in order to meet the diverse nature of the pattern distribution of social media data. To this end, we propose three vigilance adaptation methods, namely, the activation maximization (AM) rule, the confliction minimization (CM) rule, and the hybrid integration (HI) rule. With an initial vigilance value, the resulting clustering algorithms, namely, the AM-ART, CM-ART, and HI-ART, can automatically adapt the vigilance values of all clusters during the learning epochs in order to produce better cluster boundaries. Experiments on four social media data sets show that AM-ART, CM-ART, and HI-ART are more robust than Fuzzy ART to the initial vigilance value, and they usually achieve better or comparable performance and much faster speed than the state-of-the-art clustering algorithms that also do not require a predefined number of clusters.

  15. The E1 proteins

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bergvall, Monika; Melendy, Thomas; Archambault, Jacques

    2013-01-01

    E1, an ATP-dependent DNA helicase, is the only enzyme encoded by papillomaviruses (PVs). It is essential for replication and amplification of the viral episome in the nucleus of infected cells. To do so, E1 assembles into a double-hexamer at the viral origin, unwinds DNA at the origin and ahead of the replication fork and interacts with cellular DNA replication factors. Biochemical and structural studies have revealed the assembly pathway of E1 at the origin and how the enzyme unwinds DNA using a spiral escalator mechanism. E1 is tightly regulated in vivo, in particular by post-translational modifications that restrict its accumulation in the nucleus. Here we review how different functional domains of E1 orchestrate viral DNA replication, with an emphasis on their interactions with substrate DNA, host DNA replication factors and modifying enzymes. These studies have made E1 one of the best characterized helicases and provided unique insights on how PVs usurp different host-cell machineries to replicate and amplify their genome in a tightly controlled manner. - Highlights: • The papillomavirus E1 helicase orchestrates replication of the viral DNA genome. • E1 assembles into a double-hexamer at the viral origin with the help of E2. • E1 interacts with cellular DNA replication factors. • E1 unwinds DNA using a spiral escalator mechanism. • Nuclear accumulation of E1 is regulated by post-translational modifications

  16. MANNER OF STOCKS SORTING USING CLUSTER ANALYSIS METHODS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jana Halčinová

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the present article is to show the possibility of using the methods of cluster analysis in classification of stocks of finished products. Cluster analysis creates groups (clusters of finished products according to similarity in demand i.e. customer requirements for each product. Manner stocks sorting of finished products by clusters is described a practical example. The resultants clusters are incorporated into the draft layout of the distribution warehouse.

  17. e-Cluster Building and Using for Nuclear Industry Human Resources

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hur, Jung Hoon; Suh, Jang Soo

    2009-01-01

    In line with its industry support policy, KHNP provides training courses for small and medium sized companies within the nuclear sector. The courses cover three main areas; technical development, market expansion and human resource and finance. They are provided in traditional classroom settings and on-line. Employees from small and medium sized companies can take any of the available courses according to company and individual training and development requirements. While the training and development opportunities serve a role in the growth and development of skills and capabilities industry-wide, KHNP also sees the involvement of a wide range of nuclear industry participants in the program as a means of developing a safety consensus that addresses both operational and social safety concerns. The purpose of this paper is to outline the successes of the KHNP industry training support program to date and to propose the development of an e-Cluster model. This model envisages the development of a nuclear industry. It will provide a means for sharing information and developing and maintaining industry-wide technical, management and safety standards

  18. Pengembangan Model CYBER CLUSTER E-COMMERCE Berbasis CMS dan SEO Produk UMKM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dwi Agus Diartono

    2015-07-01

    Abstract Problems that are often faced by UMKM (SME is the limited number and range of marketing and sales of its products. So is the competition of similar products can occur by inter-local products or products that come from outside. This is because marketing and sales are still done conventionally and done individually. This study intends to make the implementation of a model system of E-Commerce SME product in an area or district with the participation of empowerment models cyber group (cluster cyber participatory in performing web linking system that was developed using Optimisazion Search Engine (SEO and Content Management System (CMS. The goal is for the web that can be developed easily ranked the Web search page (search engines and always updated content and rank. The benefit of this research is to improve the marketing and sale of products of SMEs to global market and making it easy to find the web address and and are found as often appear in top positions in the search engines like google. Outcomes of this research is based CMS website MSME products and optimized the model of internal and external links that always appears at the top position of the search range. Methods This study uses an action research, the model of structured systems development waterfall model (waterfall. Its own web application developed with prototype models, according to consumer needs.   Keywords—Cyber-Cluster, SEO, CMS, SME

  19. Structural stability of nano-sized clusters

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    De Hosson, JTM; Palasantzas, G; Vystavel, T; Koch, S; Ovidko,; Pande, CS; Krishnamoorti, R; Lavernia, E; Skandan, G

    2004-01-01

    This contribution presents challenges to control the microstructure in nano-structured materials via a relatively new approach, i.e. using a so-called nanocluster source. An important aspect is that the cluster size distribution is monodisperse and that the kinetic energy of the clusters during

  20. Direct atomic imaging and density functional theory study of the Au24Pd1 cluster catalyst.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bruma, A; Negreiros, F R; Xie, S; Tsukuda, T; Johnston, R L; Fortunelli, A; Li, Z Y

    2013-10-21

    In this study we report a direct, atomic-resolution imaging of calcined Au24Pd1 clusters supported on multiwall carbon nanotubes by employing aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy. Using gold atoms as mass standards, we confirm the cluster size to be 25 ± 2, in agreement with the Au24Pd1(SR)18 precursor used in the synthesis. Concurrently, a Density-Functional/Basin-Hopping computational algorithm is employed to locate the low-energy configurations of free Au24Pd1 cluster. Cage structures surrounding a single core atom are found to be favored, with a slight preference for Pd to occupy the core site. The cluster shows a tendency toward elongated arrangements, consistent with experimental data. The degree of electron transfer from the Pd dopant to Au is quantified through a Löwdin charge analysis, suggesting that Pd may act as an electron promoter to the surrounding Au atoms when they are involved in catalytic reactions.