Functions out of Higher Truncations

In homotopy type theory, the truncation operator ||-||n (for a number n > -2) is often useful if one does not care about the higher structure of a type and wants to avoid coherence problems. However, its elimination principle only allows to eliminate into n-types, which makes it hard to construct functions ||A||n -> B if B is not an n-type. This makes it desirable to derive more powerful elimination theorems. We show a first general result: If B is an (n+1)-type, then functions ||A||n -> B correspond exactly to functions A -> B which are constant on all (n+1)-st loop spaces. We give one "elementary" proof and one proof that uses a higher inductive type, both of which require some effort. As a sample application of our result, we show that we can construct "set-based" representations of 1-types, as long as they have "braided" loop spaces. The main result with one of its proofs and the application have been formalised in Agda.Comment: 15 pages; to appear at CSL'1

Dynamic Light Scattering on Nanoparticles in Microgravity in a Drop Tower

Gravity affects colloidal dispersions via sedimentation and convection. We used dynamic light scattering (DLS) to quantify the mobility of nanoparticles on ground and in microgravity. A DLS instrument was adapted to withstand the accelerations in a drop tower, and a liquid handling set-up was connected in order to stabilize the liquid temperature and enable rapid cooling or heating. Light scattering experiments were performed in the drop tower at ZARM (Bremen, Germany) during a microgravity interval of 9.1 s and compared to measurements on ground. Particle dynamics were analyzed at constant temperature and after a rapid temperature drop using a series of DLS measurements with 1 s integration time. We observed nanoparticles with average gold core diameters of 7.8 nm and non-polar oleylamine shells that were dispersed in tetradecane and had an average hydrodynamic diameter of 21 nm. The particles did not change their diameter in the observed temperature range. The particle dynamics inferred from DLS on ground and in microgravity were in good agreement, demonstrating the possibility to perform reliable DLS measurements in a drop tower

Microgravity Removes Reaction Limits from Nonpolar Nanoparticle Agglomeration

Gravity can affect the agglomeration of nanoparticles by changing convection and sedimentation. The temperature-induced agglomeration of hexadecanethiol-capped gold nanoparticles in microgravity (µ g) is studied at the ZARM (Center of Applied Space Technology and Microgravity) drop tower and compared to their agglomeration on the ground (1 g). Nonpolar nanoparticles with a hydrodynamic diameter of 13 nm are dispersed in tetradecane, rapidly cooled from 70 to 10 °C to induce agglomeration, and observed by dynamic light scattering at a time resolution of 1 s. The mean hydrodynamic diameters of the agglomerates formed after 8 s in microgravity are 3 times (for low initial concentrations) to 5 times (at high initial concentrations) larger than on the ground. The observations are consistent with an agglomeration process that is closer to the reaction limit on thground and closer to the diffusion limit in microgravity

Complexer-YOLO: Real-Time 3D Object Detection and Tracking on Semantic Point Clouds

Accurate detection of 3D objects is a fundamental problem in computer vision and has an enormous impact on autonomous cars, augmented/virtual reality and many applications in robotics. In this work we present a novel fusion of neural network based state-of-the-art 3D detector and visual semantic segmentation in the context of autonomous driving. Additionally, we introduce Scale-Rotation-Translation score (SRTs), a fast and highly parameterizable evaluation metric for comparison of object detections, which speeds up our inference time up to 20\% and halves training time. On top, we apply state-of-the-art online multi target feature tracking on the object measurements to further increase accuracy and robustness utilizing temporal information. Our experiments on KITTI show that we achieve same results as state-of-the-art in all related categories, while maintaining the performance and accuracy trade-off and still run in real-time. Furthermore, our model is the first one that fuses visual semantic with 3D object detection

Influence of forest management on water quality and Hg dynamics

Forest management is hypothesized to increase the mercury (Hg) load towards aquatic systems. In this study a synoptic research was carried out assessing 55 sites across Sweden, whereby the sampling scheme was designed to compare reference (N = 18), stump harvested (N = 16) and site prepared (N = 21) areas. The influence of forest treatment irrespective the separation into stump harvest and site preparation on Hg export to surface water streams was evaluated with regard to water quality (TOC, suspended solids, TSS) and with special focus on Hg and MeHg levels. Furthermore, the parameters affecting THg and MeHg concentrations were determined. Total phosphor (Ptot), total nitrogen (Ntot) and total organic carbon (TOC) concentrations were significantly higher in the treated areas compared to the reference sites (p = 0.0465, p = 0.0251 and p = 0.0487, respectively). THg revealed nearly significant higher concentration in the treated areas than in the reference site (p = 0.077). MeHg concentrations were not significantly differing between treated and reference areas, although a high standard deviation in the treated areas indicate that site specific catchment characteristics play an important role in the overall MeHg and THg mobilization. The individual comparison of stump harvested and site prepared areas showed no statistical significant difference. This might indicate that in general the treatment methods did not differ regarding their effects of Hg mobilization as well as nutrient and ion leaching on surface water quality. THg and MeHg correlated positive with TOC (R² = 0.70, p < 0.0001 and R² = 0.48, p < 0.0001). Furthermore, the quite strong significant correlation of THg and MeHg with absorption (unfiltered, 420 nm) that was R² = 0.66, p < 0.0001 and R² = 0.60, p < 0.0001, respectively, could favor the implementation of absorption measurement as a first estimate of Hg concentration in water. This study could not confirm the indications in literature that forest harvesting is severalfold increasing THg and MeHg load to aquatic systems

Factors controlling the temporal variability of mercury in runoff from seven catchments in Northern and Southern Sweden

The increased input of anthropogenic mercury in the environment has led to the accumulation of mercury (Hg) in the aquatic food chain and poses serious problems to the ecosystem and human health. Time series data from May 2004 – May 2010 in three catchments in northern (Balsjö) and from October 2006 – 2009 in four catchments in southern (Örebro) Sweden associated with different forest treatments (e. g. clear cut, site preparation) were assessed to determine the influence of different factors on the temporal pattern of total organic carbon (TOC), total mercury (THg) and methylmercury (MeHg). Mean THg and MeHg concentrations varied in Balsjö between 4.92 – 5.48 and 0.39 – 0.47 ng/L and between 5.60 – 10.36 and 0.90 – 1.71 ng/L in Örebro. MeHg mean concentrations peaked in all catchments during summer period coinciding with maximum biological activity and were associated with low flow conditions. Analyzing THg concentrations over all seasons it was found that they also peaked in summer, however, the concentrations were more attributed to high flow in Balsjö and to low flow in Örebro. Site SP in Örebro had the highest export of MeHg, THg and TOC in this study (19.49 µg/d*ha, 137.89 µg/d*ha and 405.50 g/d*ha). In Balsjö, THg concentrations showed a good correlation with flow, whereas the THg-flow relationship had no significant importance in Örebro. The Riparian Profile Flow-Concentration Integration Model (RIM) was used to show controls over TOC, MeHg and THg stream concentration in the different catchments. The RIM achieved highest Nash-Sutcliff (NS) coefficients at all sites after adding a seasonal component to the simulations. The RIM simulated soil solution profiles for the sites in Örebro and Balsjö supported the results gained from time series and soil dry fraction analysis. This study highlighted the importance of different drivers for the seasonal variation in THg and MeHg concentrations. The results indicated that the Balsjö sites were more flow driven, whereas the catchments in Örebro were characterized by a strong seasonal pattern. Furthermore, the high importance of antecedent flow and temperature on THg and MeHg concentrations (Past Least Square (PLS) analysis) highlighted the influence of the watershed conditions prior to an event. Across all sites, it was shown that organic matter was the number one factor explaining total mercury dynamics. In Örebro 54 – 85 % and in Balsjö 62 – 72 % of the variation in THg concentrations could be explained by TOC

Resolving the clumpy circumstellar environment of the B[e] supergiant LHA 120-S 35

Context. B[e] supergiants are massive post-main-sequence stars, surrounded by a complex circumstellar environment where moleculesand dust can survive. The shape in which the material is distributed around these objects and its dynamics as well as the mechanismsthat give rise to these structures are not well understood.Aims. The aim of this work is to deepen our knowledge of the structure and kinematics of the circumstellar disc of the B[e] supergiantLHA 120-S 35.Methods. High-resolution optical spectra were obtained in three different years. Forbidden emission lines, that contribute to trace thedisc at different distances from the star, are modelled in order to determine the kinematical properties of their line-forming regions,assuming Keplerian rotation. In addition, we used low-resolution near-infrared spectra to explore the variability of molecular emission.Results. LHA 120-S 35 displays an evident spectral variability in both optical and infrared regions. The P-Cygni line profiles of H i,as well as those of Fe ii and O i, suggest the presence of a strong bipolar clumped wind. We distinguish density enhancements in theP-Cygni absorption component of the first Balmer lines, which show variations in both velocity and strength. The P-Cygni profileemission component is double-peaked, indicating the presence of a rotating circumstellar disc surrounding the star. We also observeline-profile variations in the permitted and forbidden features of Fe ii and O i. In the infrared, we detect variations in the intensity ofthe H i emission lines as well as in the emission of the CO band-heads. Moreover, we find that the profiles of each [Ca ii] and [O i]emission lines contain contributions from spatially different (complete or partial) rings. Globally, we find evidence of detached multi-ring structures, revealing density variations along the disc. We identify an inner ring, with sharp edge, where [Ca ii] and [O i] linesshare their forming region with the CO molecular bands. The outermost regions show a complex structure, outlined by fragmentedclumps or partial-ring features of Ca ii and O i. Additionally, we observe variations in the profiles of the only visible absorptionfeatures, the He i lines.Conclusions. We suggest that LHA 120-S 35 has passed through the red-supergiant (RSG) phase and evolves back bluewards in theHertzsprung-Russell diagram. In this scenario, the formation of the complex circumstellar structure could be the result of the wind-wind interactions of the post-RSG wind with the previously ejected material from the RSG. The accumulation of material in thecircumstellar environment could be attributed to enhanced mass-loss, probably triggered by stellar pulsations. However, the presenceof a binary companion can not be excluded. Finally, we find that LHA 120-S 35 is the third B[e] supergiant belonging to a youngstellar cluster.Fil: Torres, Andrea Fabiana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas; ArgentinaFil: Cidale, Lydia Sonia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas; ArgentinaFil: Kraus, M.. Tartu Observatory, Estonia; Estonia. Astronomický Ústav, Akademie Ved Ceské Republiky; República ChecaFil: Arias, María Laura. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas. Instituto de Astrofísica La Plata; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y Geofísicas; ArgentinaFil: Barba, Rodolfo Hector. Universidad de La Serena; ChileFil: Maravelias, G.. Universidad de Valparaiso; Chile. Astronomický Ústav, Akademie Ved Ceské Republiky; República ChecaFil: Borges Fernandes, M.. Ministério de Ciencia, Tecnologia e Innovacao. Observatorio Nacional; Brasi

The impact of cold spells on the incidence of infectious gastroenteritis and relapse rates of inflammatory bowel disease: a retrospective controlled observational study

Goals: We aimed to assess the impact of very cold days on inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) flares and infectious gastroenteritis (IG). We defined a cold day using the World Meteorological definition of an ice day, which is a day with a maximum temperature below 0°C. Background: Recently, we have shown that heat waves increase the risk for IG and IBD flares. Study: We retrospectively collected data from 738 IBD and 786 IG patients admitted to the University Hospital of Zurich between 2001 and 2005 and from 506 patients with other noninfectious chronic intestinal inflammations as controls. Climate data were received by the Swiss Federal Office for Meteorology and Climatology. Results: There was no evidence for an increased risk of IBD flares (relative risk, RR = 0.99, 95% confidence interval, CI: 0.72-1.33, = 0.94) or IG flares (RR = 1.16, 95% CI: 087-1.52, = 0.30) on very cold days. This negative finding was confirmed in alternative formulations with lagged or cumulative (possibly lagged) effects. Conclusion: In this retrospective controlled observational study, no evidence for an increase in hospital admissions due to flares of IBD and IG during cold days was observed. This may be attributed to not relevantly altered bacterial growth conditions during cold days compared to heat waves