Sensitivity projections for a dual-phase argon TPC optimized for light dark matter searches through the ionization channel

Dark matter lighter than 10  GeV/c2 encompasses a promising range of candidates. A conceptual design for a new detector, DarkSide-LowMass, is presented, based on the DarkSide-50 detector and progress toward DarkSide-20k, optimized for a low-threshold electron-counting measurement. Sensitivity to light dark matter is explored for various potential energy thresholds and background rates. These studies show that DarkSide-LowMass can achieve sensitivity to light dark matter down to the solar neutrino fog for GeV-scale masses and significant sensitivity down to 10  MeV/c2 considering the Migdal effect or interactions with electrons. Requirements for optimizing the detector’s sensitivity are explored, as are potential sensitivity gains from modeling and mitigating spurious electron backgrounds that may dominate the signal at the lowest energies

Antennas for the detection of radio emission pulses from cosmic-ray induced air showers at the Pierre Auger Observatory

The Pierre Auger Observatory is exploring the potential of the radio detection technique to study extensive air showers induced by ultra-high energy cosmic rays. The Auger Engineering Radio Array (AERA) addresses both technological and scientific aspects of the radio technique. A first phase of AERA has been operating since September 2010 with detector stations observing radio signals at frequencies between 30 and 80 MHz. In this paper we present comparative studies to identify and optimize the antenna design for the final configuration of AERA consisting of 160 individual radio detector stations. The transient nature of the air shower signal requires a detailed description of the antenna sensor. As the ultra-wideband reception of pulses is not widely discussed in antenna literature, we review the relevant antenna characteristics and enhance theoretical considerations towards the impulse response of antennas including polarization effects and multiple signal reflections. On the basis of the vector effective length we study the transient response characteristics of three candidate antennas in the time domain. Observing the variation of the continuous galactic background intensity we rank the antennas with respect to the noise level added to the galactic signal

Constraints on dark matter-nucleon effective couplings in the presence of kinematically distinct halo substructures using the DEAP-3600 detector

DEAP-3600 is a single-phase liquid argon detector aiming to directly detect weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs), located at SNOLAB (Sudbury, Canada). After analyzing data taken during the first year of operation, a null result was used to place an upper bound on the WIMP-nucleon, spin-independent, isoscalar cross section. This study reinterprets this result within a nonrelativistic effective field theory framework and further examines how various possible substructures in the local dark matter halo may affect these constraints. Such substructures are hinted at by kinematic structures in the local stellar distribution observed by the Gaia satellite and other recent astronomical surveys. These include the Gaia Sausage (or Enceladus), as well as a number of distinct streams identified in recent studies. Limits are presented for the coupling strength of the effective contact interaction operators O1, O3, O5, O8, and O11, considering isoscalar, isovector, and xenonphobic scenarios, as well as the specific operators corresponding to millicharge, magnetic dipole, electric dipole, and anapole interactions. The effects of halo substructures on each of these operators are explored as well, showing that the O5 and O8 operators are particularly sensitive to the velocity distribution, even at dark matter masses above 100 GeV=c

Consistent patterns of common species across tropical tree communities

Trees structure the Earth’s most biodiverse ecosystem, tropical forests. The vast number of tree species presents a formidable challenge to understanding these forests, including their response to environmental change, as very little is known about most tropical tree species. A focus on the common species may circumvent this challenge. Here we investigate abundance patterns of common tree species using inventory data on 1,003,805 trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm across 1,568 locations1,2,3,4,5,6 in closed-canopy, structurally intact old-growth tropical forests in Africa, Amazonia and Southeast Asia. We estimate that 2.2%, 2.2% and 2.3% of species comprise 50% of the tropical trees in these regions, respectively. Extrapolating across all closed-canopy tropical forests, we estimate that just 1,053 species comprise half of Earth’s 800 billion tropical trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm. Despite differing biogeographic, climatic and anthropogenic histories7, we find notably consistent patterns of common species and species abundance distributions across the continents. This suggests that fundamental mechanisms of tree community assembly may apply to all tropical forests. Resampling analyses show that the most common species are likely to belong to a manageable list of known species, enabling targeted efforts to understand their ecology. Although they do not detract from the importance of rare species, our results open new opportunities to understand the world’s most diverse forests, including modelling their response to environmental change, by focusing on the common species that constitute the majority of their trees

First Sagittarius A* Event Horizon Telescope results. I. The shadow of the supermassive black hole in the center of the Milky Way

Galaxie

First Sagittarius A* event horizon telescope results. II. EHT and multiwavelength observations, data processing, and calibration

Instrumentatio

Global, regional, and national age-sex-specific mortality and life expectancy, 1950–2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017

BACKGROUND: Assessments of age-specific mortality and life expectancy have been done by the UN Population Division, Department of Economics and Social Affairs (UNPOP), the United States Census Bureau, WHO, and as part of previous iterations of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD). Previous iterations of the GBD used population estimates from UNPOP, which were not derived in a way that was internally consistent with the estimates of the numbers of deaths in the GBD. The present iteration of the GBD, GBD 2017, improves on previous assessments and provides timely estimates of the mortality experience of populations globally. METHODS: The GBD uses all available data to produce estimates of mortality rates between 1950 and 2017 for 23 age groups, both sexes, and 918 locations, including 195 countries and territories and subnational locations for 16 countries. Data used include vital registration systems, sample registration systems, household surveys (complete birth histories, summary birth histories, sibling histories), censuses (summary birth histories, household deaths), and Demographic Surveillance Sites. In total, this analysis used 8259 data sources. Estimates of the probability of death between birth and the age of 5 years and between ages 15 and 60 years are generated and then input into a model life table system to produce complete life tables for all locations and years. Fatal discontinuities and mortality due to HIV/AIDS are analysed separately and then incorporated into the estimation. We analyse the relationship between age-specific mortality and development status using the Socio-demographic Index, a composite measure based on fertility under the age of 25 years, education, and income. There are four main methodological improvements in GBD 2017 compared with GBD 2016: 622 additional data sources have been incorporated; new estimates of population, generated by the GBD study, are used; statistical methods used in different components of the analysis have been further standardised and improved; and the analysis has been extended backwards in time by two decades to start in 1950. FINDINGS: Globally, 18·7% (95% uncertainty interval 18·4–19·0) of deaths were registered in 1950 and that proportion has been steadily increasing since, with 58·8% (58·2–59·3) of all deaths being registered in 2015. At the global level, between 1950 and 2017, life expectancy increased from 48·1 years (46·5–49·6) to 70·5 years (70·1–70·8) for men and from 52·9 years (51·7–54·0) to 75·6 years (75·3–75·9) for women. Despite this overall progress, there remains substantial variation in life expectancy at birth in 2017, which ranges from 49·1 years (46·5–51·7) for men in the Central African Republic to 87·6 years (86·9–88·1) among women in Singapore. The greatest progress across age groups was for children younger than 5 years; under-5 mortality dropped from 216·0 deaths (196·3–238·1) per 1000 livebirths in 1950 to 38·9 deaths (35·6–42·83) per 1000 livebirths in 2017, with huge reductions across countries. Nevertheless, there were still 5·4 million (5·2–5·6) deaths among children younger than 5 years in the world in 2017. Progress has been less pronounced and more variable for adults, especially for adult males, who had stagnant or increasing mortality rates in several countries. The gap between male and female life expectancy between 1950 and 2017, while relatively stable at the global level, shows distinctive patterns across super-regions and has consistently been the largest in central Europe, eastern Europe, and central Asia, and smallest in south Asia. Performance was also variable across countries and time in observed mortality rates compared with those expected on the basis of development. INTERPRETATION: This analysis of age-sex-specific mortality shows that there are remarkably complex patterns in population mortality across countries. The findings of this study highlight global successes, such as the large decline in under-5 mortality, which reflects significant local, national, and global commitment and investment over several decades. However, they also bring attention to mortality patterns that are a cause for concern, particularly among adult men and, to a lesser extent, women, whose mortality rates have stagnated in many countries over the time period of this study, and in some cases are increasing

A heterotrimetallic Ir(III), Au(III) and Pt(II) complex incorporating cyclometallating bi- and tridentate ligands : simultaneous emission from different luminescent metal centres leads to broad-band light emission

Di- and tri-nuclear metal complexes incorporating gold(III), iridium(III) and platinum(II) units linked via a 1,3,5-triethynylbenzene core are reported, together with the corresponding mononuclear complexes as models. The gold(III) and platinum(II) units comprise tridentate, cyclometallating, C^N^C and N^N^C-coordinating ligands, respectively, with the Ar–C[triple bond, length as m-dash]C– directly bound to the metal at the fourth coordination site. The iridium moiety is an Ir(ppy)2(acac) unit bound to the triethynylbenzene through a phenyl substituent at the 3-position of the acac ligand. The multinuclear compounds are prepared, using a modular synthetic strategy, from the monometallic complexes. All of the compounds are luminescent in solution at room temperature, and their photophysical properties were studied. The triplet excited state energies of the mononuclear complexes lie in the order Au > Ir > Pt. Consistent with this order, energy transfer from Au to Ir and from Au to Pt is observed, leading to quenching of the Au emission in the gold-containing multinuclear complexes. Energy transfer from Ir to Pt occurs at a rate that only partially quenches the Ir-based emission. As a result, the dinuclear Ir–Pt and trinuclear Au–Ir–Pt complexes display broad emission across most of the visible region of the spectrum

Diferencias del automanejo en personas con enfermedades crónicas en población peruana

Introduction: An appropriate self-management by persons living with chronic conditions such as cancer, diabetes, or hypertension, can make a big difference in terms of quality of life. Therefore, it is important to enhance our knowledge regarding how persons suffering from any of these chronic diseases self-manage their condition. Objective: To describe how Peruvian persons living with cancer, diabetes, or hypertension, self-manage their condition. Méthod: This is a transversal-comparative study on a sample of n = 562 Peruvian persons: 160 with cancer, 187 with diabetes, and 215 with hypertension. The sampling was probabilistic and intentional. The Partners in Health (PIH) instrument was used. Descriptive and non-parametric statistics were calculated. The Kruskall Wallis test was used to compare three independent sample types. The difference effects and statistical power were also calculated. Results: The general self-management index and its related dimensions in the three groups were below the general mean respectively. No differences were found between groups in terms of clinical diagnosis (cancer, diabetes mellitus, hypertension). ρ .80 and d>0.20). Discussion and Conclusions: Persons with chronic conditions demonstrate inadequate self-management. No differences were found based on the medical diagnosis. Consequently, it is imperative to implement programs aimed at improving self-management, particularly within the first level of attention. More research on the issue needs to be conducted in Latin America, especially regarding persons suffering from cancer.Introdução: A autogestão em pessoas com alguma condições crônicas não é uma opção, realizá-la adequadamente marca a diferença na qualidade de vida de pessoas com uma doença crônica, como câncer, diabetes e hipertensão arterial. Ainda há pouco conhecimento sobre semelhanças ou diferenças na autogestão entre esses três grupos de indivíduos. Objetivo: Descrever a autogestão por meio da análise das diferentes dimensões em três grupos de pessoas com diabetes, hipertensão e câncer. Método: Estudo transversal comparativo com n = 562 pessoas: 160 com câncer, 187 com diabetes e 215 com hipertensão. Amostragem não probabilística intencional. Foi aplicado o instrumento Partners in Health (PIH). Foram utilizadas estatísticas descritivas e não paramétricas por meio do teste de Kruskall Sallis para comparar três amostras independentes, calculou-se o efeito da diferença e a potência estatística. Resultados: O índice geral de autogestão e suas dimensões nos três grupos estão abaixo da média geral, respectivamente. Não foram encontradas diferenças entre os grupos de acordo com o diagnóstico médico (diabetes, hipertensão e câncer). ρ.80 y d >.20). Discussão e Conclusões: Pessoas com condição crônica apresentam autogestão inadequada, não se identificam diferenças na autogestão global e suas dimensões conforme o diagnóstico médico. Consequentemente, torna-se relevante a implantação de programas genéricos que promovam a autogestão, principalmente no primeiro nível de atenção, aliás devem-se aumentar as pesquisas na América Latina, especialmente em pessoas com câncer.Introducción: El automanejo en personas con alguna condición crónica no es una opción, realizarlo adecuadamente marca la diferencia en la calidad de vida de las personas con una enfermedad crónica, como son cáncer, diabetes e hipertensión arterial. Existe aún muy poco conocimiento sobre similitudes o diferencias del automanejo entre estos tres grupos de individuos. Objetivo: Describir el automanejo a través del análisis de las diferentes dimensiones en tres grupos de personas con diabetes, hipertensión y cáncer. Método: Estudio transversal-comparativo con n= 562 personas: 160 con cáncer, 187 con diabetes y 215 con hipertensión. Muestreo no probabilístico intencional. Se aplicó el instrumento Partners in Health (PIH). Se utilizó la estadística descriptiva y no paramétrica a través de la prueba de Kruskall Wallis para comparar tres muestras independientes, se calculó el efecto de la diferencia y la potencia estadística. Resultados: El índice general de automanejo y sus dimensiones en los tres grupos están por debajo de la media general respectivamente. No se encontraron diferencias entre los grupos según su diagnóstico médico (diabetes, hipertensión y cáncer). ρ.80 y d> .20). Discusión y Conclusiones: Las personas con alguna condición crónica presentan un automanejo inadecuado, no se identifican diferencias en el automanejo global y sus dimensiones según diagnóstico médico. En consecuencia, se hace relevante la implementación de programas genéricos que promueven el automanejo, sobre todo en el primer nivel de atención, además se debe incrementar las investigaciones en Latinoamérica, con mayor atención en personas con cáncer