54,014 research outputs found
A gap analysis of confined field trial application forms for genetically modified crops in East Africa: evaluating the potential for harmonization
"The regulatory approval of genetically modified crops in the field initially requires small, restricted experimental trials known as confined field trials. These small scale experiments provide researchers with important information on environmental interactions and agronomic performance of the crop in a safe and contained manner. To authorize confined field trials regulatory review is required, with formats for obtaining relevant information differing from country to country. In this paper, a Gap Analysis is used to identify informational gaps and potential for harmonization of confined field trial application processes in three East African countries - Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda. The basic principle behind gap analysis is a comparison of the status quo to an ideal with the identification of the differences or gaps and the difficulty involved in removing the gaps. The resulting similarity of the application forms provides a potential basis for harmonization of confined field trial application processes between countries leading to potential efficiency gains." Authors' abstractGenetically modified crops, Gap analysis, Confined field trials, biotechnology,
Eulerian Statistically Preserved Structures in Passive Scalar Advection
We analyze numerically the time-dependent linear operators that govern the
dynamics of Eulerian correlation functions of a decaying passive scalar
advected by a stationary, forced 2-dimensional Navier-Stokes turbulence. We
show how to naturally discuss the dynamics in terms of effective compact
operators that display Eulerian Statistically Preserved Structures which
determine the anomalous scaling of the correlation functions. In passing we
point out a bonus of the present approach, in providing analytic predictions
for the time-dependent correlation functions in decaying turbulent transport.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figures. Submitted to Phys. Rev.
An improved lower bound for (1,<=2)-identifying codes in the king grid
We call a subset of vertices of a graph a -identifying
code if for all subsets of vertices with size at most , the sets
are distinct. The concept of
identifying codes was introduced in 1998 by Karpovsky, Chakrabarty and Levitin.
Identifying codes have been studied in various grids. In particular, it has
been shown that there exists a -identifying code in the king grid
with density 3/7 and that there are no such identifying codes with density
smaller than 5/12. Using a suitable frame and a discharging procedure, we
improve the lower bound by showing that any -identifying code of
the king grid has density at least 47/111
An Update on the 0Z Project
We give an update on our 0Z Survey to find more extremely metal poor (EMP)
stars with [Fe/H] < -3 dex through mining the database of the Hamburg/ESO
Survey. We present the most extreme such stars we have found from ~1550
moderate resolution follow up spectra. One of these, HE1424-0241, has highly
anomalous abundance ratios not seen in any previously known halo giant, with
very deficient Si, moderately deficient Ca and Ti, highly enhanced Mn and Co,
and low C, all with respect to Fe. We suggest a SNII where the nucleosynthetic
yield for explosive alpha-burning nuclei was very low compared to that for the
hydrostatic alpha-burning element Mg, which is normal in this star relative to
Fe. A second, less extreme, outlier star with high [Sc/Fe] has also been found.
We examine the extremely metal-poor tail of the HES metallicity distribution
function (MDF). We suggest on the basis of comparison of our high resolution
detailed abundance analyses with [Fe/H](HES) for stars in our sample that the
MDF inferred from follow up spectra of the HES sample of candidate EMP stars is
heavily contaminated for [Fe/H](HES) < -3 dex; many of the supposed EMP stars
below that metallicity are of substantially higher Fe-metallicity, including
most of the very C-rich stars, or are spurious objects.Comment: to appear in conference proceedings "First Stars III", ed. B. O'Shea,
A. Heger & T.Abel, 4 pages, 2 figure
The Schwinger mechanism and graphene
The Schwinger mechanism, the production of charged particle-antiparticle
pairs in a macroscopic external electric field, is derived for 2+1 dimensional
theories. The rate of pair production per unit area for four species of
massless fermions, with charge , in a constant electric field is given
by where is
the speed of light for the two-dimensional system. To the extent undoped
graphene behaves like the quantum field-theoretic vacuum for massless fermions
in 2+1 dimensions, the Schwinger mechanism should be testable experimentally. A
possible experimental configuration for this is proposed. Effects due to
deviations from this idealized picture of graphene are briefly considered. It
is argued that with present day samples of graphene, tests of the Schwinger
formula may be possible.Comment: Extensive revisions. The distinction between the vacuum decay rate
and the pair production rate in the Schwinger mechanism is now stressed. The
discussion of quality of sample needed for a viable experimental test has
been significantly expanded. References adde
Front Propagation up a Reaction Rate Gradient
We expand on a previous study of fronts in finite particle number
reaction-diffusion systems in the presence of a reaction rate gradient in the
direction of the front motion. We study the system via reaction-diffusion
equations, using the expedient of a cutoff in the reaction rate below some
critical density to capture the essential role of fl uctuations in the system.
For large density, the velocity is large, which allows for an approximate
analytic treatment. We derive an analytic approximation for the front velocity
depe ndence on bulk particle density, showing that the velocity indeed diverge
s in the infinite density limit. The form in which diffusion is impleme nted,
namely nearest-neighbor hopping on a lattice, is seen to have an essential
impact on the nature of the divergence
Local and global statistical distances are equivalent on pure states
The statistical distance between pure quantum states is obtained by finding a
measurement that is optimal in a sense defined by Wootters. As such, one may
expect that the statistical distance will turn out to be different if the set
of possible measurements is restricted in some way. It nonetheless turns out
that if the restriction is to local operations and classical communication
(LOCC) on any multipartite system, then the statistical distance is the same as
it is without restriction, being equal to the angle between the states in
Hilbert space.Comment: 5 pages, comments welcom
Studies related to primitive chemistry. A proton and nitrogen-14 nuclear magnetic resonance amino acid and nucleic acid constituents and a and their possible relation to prebiotic
Preliminary proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies were made to determine the applicability of this technique for the study of interactions between monomeric and polymeric amino acids with monomeric nucleic acid bases and nucleotides. Proton NMR results for aqueous solutions (D2O) demonstrated interactions between the bases cytosine and adenine and acidic and aromatic amino acids. Solutions of 5'-AMP admixed with amino acids exhibited more complex behavior but stacking between aromatic rings and destacking at high amino acids concentration was evident. The multisite nature of 5'-AMP was pointed out. Chemical shift changes for adenine and 5'-AMP with three water soluble polypeptides demonstrated that significant interactions exist. It was found that the linewidth-pH profile of each amino acid is unique. It is concluded that NMR techniques can give significant and quantitative data on the association of amino acid and nucleic acid constituents
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