Disintegration of the genus Prosopis L. (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae, mimosoid clade)

Robust evidence from phylogenomic analyses of 997 nuclear genes has recently shown, beyond doubt, that the genus Prosopis is polyphyletic with three separate lineages, each with affinities to other genera of mimosoids: (i) Prosopis africana is an isolated lineage placed in the grade of Plathymenia, Newtonia and Fillaeopsis that subtends the core mimosoid clade; (ii) the remaining Old World species of Prosopis form a clade that is sister to the Indo-Nepalese monospecific genus Indopiptadenia and (iii) New World Prosopis has the Namibian / Namaqualand monospecific endemic genus Xerocladia nested within it. This means that it is now clear that maintaining the unity of the genus Prosopis sensu Burkart (1976) is no longer tenable. These three distinct lineages of Prosopis species correspond directly to Burkart’s (1976) sectional classification of the genus, to previously recognised genera and to the differences in types of armature that underpin Burkart’s sections. Here, we address this non-monophyly by resurrecting three segregate genera – Anonychium, Neltuma and Strombocarpa and provide 57 new name combinations where necessary, while maintaining the morphologically distinctive and geographically isolated genera Xerocladia and Indopiptadenia. The genus Prosopis itself is reduced to just three species and an emended description is presented. The impacts of these name changes for a genus of such high ecological and human use importance are discussed. These impacts are mitigated by clear differences in armature which facilitate identification and by potential benefits from the deeper biological understanding brought about by recognition of these divergent lineages at generic rank. We provide an identification key to genera and present a map showing the distributions of the segregate genera, as well as drawings and photos illustrating variation in armature and fruits

HRC-I/Chandra X-ray observations towards sigma Orionis

Aims: We investigated the X-ray emission from young stars and brown dwarfs in the sigma Orionis cluster (tau~3 Ma, d~385 pc) and its relation to mass, presence of circumstellar discs, and separation to the cluster centre by taking advantage of the superb spatial resolution of the Chandra X-ray Observatory. Methods: We used public HRC-I/Chandra data from a 97.6 ks pointing towards the cluster centre and complemented them with X-ray data from IPC/Einstein, HRI/ROSAT, EPIC/XMM-Newton, and ACIS-S/Chandra together with optical and infrared photometry and spectroscopy from the literature and public catalogues. On our HRC-I/Chandra data, we measured count rates, estimated X-ray fluxes, and searched for short-term variability. We also looked for long-term variability by comparing with previous X-ray observations. Results: Among the 107 detected X-ray sources, there were 70 cluster stars with known signposts of youth, two young brown dwarfs, 12 cluster member candidates, four field dwarfs, and two galaxies with optical-infrared counterpart. The remaining sources had extragalactic nature. Based on a robust Poisson-chi^2 analysis, nine cluster stars displayed flares or rotational modulation during the HRC-I observations, while other eight stars and one brown dwarf showed long-term X-ray flux variations. We constructed a cluster X-ray luminosity function from O9.5 (~18 Msol) to M6.5 (~0.06 Msol). We found: a tendency of early-type stars in multiple systems or with spectroscopic peculiarities to display X-ray emission, that the two detected brown dwarfs and the least-massive star are among the sigma Orionis objects with the highest L_X/L_J ratios, and that a large fraction of known classical T Tauri stars in the cluster are absent in this and other X-ray surveys. We concluded that dozens X-ray sigma Orionis stars and brown dwarfs are still to be detected [abridged].Comment: A&A, in pres

The impact of the Great Recession on mental health and its inequalities: the case of a Southern European region, 1997–2013

Background: Numerous studies have shown that macroeconomic changes have a great influence on health, prompting different concerns in recent literature about the effects of the current recession. The objetive of the study was to assess the changes in the mental health of the working-age population in the Basque Country (Spain) and its social inequalities following the onset of the 2008 recession, with special focus on the role of unemployment. Methods: Repeated cross-sectional study on the population aged 16-64, using four Basque Health Surveys (1997-2013). Age-adjusted prevalences of poor mental health and incremental prevalence ratios (working status and social class adjusted) between years were calculated. Absolute/relative measures of social inequalities were also calculated. Results: From 2008, there was a clear deterioration in the mental health, especially among men. Neither changes in employment status nor social class accounted for these changes. In men, the deterioration affected all working status categories, except the retired but significant changes occurred only among the employed. In women, poor mental health significantly increased among the unemployed. Students were also especially affected. Relative inequalities increased only in men. Conclusions: The Great Recession is being accompanied by adverse effects on mental health, which cannot be fully explained by the increase of unemployment. Public healtThis work was partially supported by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (State Programme for Promotion of Scientific and Technical Research Challenges (CSO2013-44886-R))

HE-LHC: The High-Energy Large Hadron Collider – Future Circular Collider Conceptual Design Report Volume 4

In response to the 2013 Update of the European Strategy for Particle Physics (EPPSU), the Future Circular Collider (FCC) study was launched as a world-wide international collaboration hosted by CERN. The FCC study covered an energy-frontier hadron collider (FCC-hh), a highest-luminosity high-energy lepton collider (FCC-ee), the corresponding 100 km tunnel infrastructure, as well as the physics opportunities of these two colliders, and a high-energy LHC, based on FCC-hh technology. This document constitutes the third volume of the FCC Conceptual Design Report, devoted to the hadron collider FCC-hh. It summarizes the FCC-hh physics discovery opportunities, presents the FCC-hh accelerator design, performance reach, and staged operation plan, discusses the underlying technologies, the civil engineering and technical infrastructure, and also sketches a possible implementation. Combining ingredients from the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the high-luminosity LHC upgrade and adding novel technologies and approaches, the FCC-hh design aims at significantly extending the energy frontier to 100 TeV. Its unprecedented centre-of-mass collision energy will make the FCC-hh a unique instrument to explore physics beyond the Standard Model, offering great direct sensitivity to new physics and discoveries

FCC-ee: The Lepton Collider: Future Circular Collider Conceptual Design Report Volume 2

In response to the 2013 Update of the European Strategy for Particle Physics, the Future Circular Collider (FCC) study was launched, as an international collaboration hosted by CERN. This study covers a highest-luminosity high-energy lepton collider (FCC-ee) and an energy-frontier hadron collider (FCC-hh), which could, successively, be installed in the same 100 km tunnel. The scientific capabilities of the integrated FCC programme would serve the worldwide community throughout the 21st century. The FCC study also investigates an LHC energy upgrade, using FCC-hh technology. This document constitutes the second volume of the FCC Conceptual Design Report, devoted to the electron-positron collider FCC-ee. After summarizing the physics discovery opportunities, it presents the accelerator design, performance reach, a staged operation scenario, the underlying technologies, civil engineering, technical infrastructure, and an implementation plan. FCC-ee can be built with today’s technology. Most of the FCC-ee infrastructure could be reused for FCC-hh. Combining concepts from past and present lepton colliders and adding a few novel elements, the FCC-ee design promises outstandingly high luminosity. This will make the FCC-ee a unique precision instrument to study the heaviest known particles (Z, W and H bosons and the top quark), offering great direct and indirect sensitivity to new physics

FCC Physics Opportunities: Future Circular Collider Conceptual Design Report Volume 1

We review the physics opportunities of the Future Circular Collider, covering its e+e-, pp, ep and heavy ion programmes. We describe the measurement capabilities of each FCC component, addressing the study of electroweak, Higgs and strong interactions, the top quark and flavour, as well as phenomena beyond the Standard Model. We highlight the synergy and complementarity of the different colliders, which will contribute to a uniquely coherent and ambitious research programme, providing an unmatchable combination of precision and sensitivity to new physics

HE-LHC: The High-Energy Large Hadron Collider: Future Circular Collider Conceptual Design Report Volume 4

In response to the 2013 Update of the European Strategy for Particle Physics (EPPSU), the Future Circular Collider (FCC) study was launched as a world-wide international collaboration hosted by CERN. The FCC study covered an energy-frontier hadron collider (FCC-hh), a highest-luminosity high-energy lepton collider (FCC-ee), the corresponding 100 km tunnel infrastructure, as well as the physics opportunities of these two colliders, and a high-energy LHC, based on FCC-hh technology. This document constitutes the third volume of the FCC Conceptual Design Report, devoted to the hadron collider FCC-hh. It summarizes the FCC-hh physics discovery opportunities, presents the FCC-hh accelerator design, performance reach, and staged operation plan, discusses the underlying technologies, the civil engineering and technical infrastructure, and also sketches a possible implementation. Combining ingredients from the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the high-luminosity LHC upgrade and adding novel technologies and approaches, the FCC-hh design aims at significantly extending the energy frontier to 100 TeV. Its unprecedented centre-of-mass collision energy will make the FCC-hh a unique instrument to explore physics beyond the Standard Model, offering great direct sensitivity to new physics and discoveries

FCC-hh: The Hadron Collider: Future Circular Collider Conceptual Design Report Volume 3

In response to the 2013 Update of the European Strategy for Particle Physics (EPPSU), the Future Circular Collider (FCC) study was launched as a world-wide international collaboration hosted by CERN. The FCC study covered an energy-frontier hadron collider (FCC-hh), a highest-luminosity high-energy lepton collider (FCC-ee), the corresponding 100 km tunnel infrastructure, as well as the physics opportunities of these two colliders, and a high-energy LHC, based on FCC-hh technology. This document constitutes the third volume of the FCC Conceptual Design Report, devoted to the hadron collider FCC-hh. It summarizes the FCC-hh physics discovery opportunities, presents the FCC-hh accelerator design, performance reach, and staged operation plan, discusses the underlying technologies, the civil engineering and technical infrastructure, and also sketches a possible implementation. Combining ingredients from the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the high-luminosity LHC upgrade and adding novel technologies and approaches, the FCC-hh design aims at significantly extending the energy frontier to 100 TeV. Its unprecedented centre of-mass collision energy will make the FCC-hh a unique instrument to explore physics beyond the Standard Model, offering great direct sensitivity to new physics and discoveries