9,674 research outputs found
Interferometric mapping of Magnetic fields: G30.79 FIR 10
We present polarization maps of G30.79 FIR 10 (in W43) from thermal dust
emission at 1.3 mm and from CO J= line emission. The observations were
obtained using the Berkeley-Illinois-Maryland Association array in the period
2002-2004. The G30.79 FIR 10 region shows an ordered polarization pattern in
dust emission, which suggests an hourglass shape for the magnetic field. Only
marginal detections for line polarization were made from this region.
Application of the Chandrashkar-Fermi method yielded mG
and a statistically corrected mass to magnetic flux ratio , or essentially critical.Comment: 11 pages, 2 Figures, Published in Ap
Fish-based groups for ecological assessment in rivers: the importance of environmental drivers on taxonomic and functional traits of fish Assemblages
The use of river-types is of practical value, serving as groups for which
assessment procedures can be developed and applied. An abiotic typology
was set by the Portuguese Water Agency, mainly based on 6 major
morphoclimatic regions. However, to be biologically meaningful, this typology
should fit the distribution patterns of the biological quality elements
communities proposed in Water Framework Directive under the lowest
possible human pressure. This study aimed to identify and characterize
fish-based geographical groups for continental Portugal and their environmental
and geographical discriptors, using taxonomic and functional
traits. Sampling took place between 2004 and 2006 during Spring. Fish
fauna from 155 reference sites was analysed using a multivariate
approach. Cluster Analysis on fish composition identified 10 fish-groups,
expressing a clear correspondence to the river basin level, due to the
restrict basin distribution of many species. Groups showed a wider aggregation
in 4 regions with a larger geographical correspondence, statistically
supported by Similarity Analysis, both on fish composition and mostly on
fish metrics/guilds. Principal Components Analysis revealed major environmental
drivers associated to fish-groups and fish-regions. Fish-groups
were hierarchically grouped over major and local regions, expressing a
large-scale response to a North-South environmental gradient defined by
temperature, precipitation, mineralization and altitude, and a regional scale
response mainly to drainage area and flow discharge. From North to
South, fish-regions were related to the morphoclimatic regions. Results
contributed to reduce redundance in abiotic river-types and set the final
typology for Portuguese rivers, constituting a fundamental tool for planning
and managing water resources
Kinematics of a globular cluster with an extended profile: NGC5694
We present a study of the kinematics of the remote globular cluster NGC5694
based on GIRAFFE@VLT medium resolution spectra. A sample of 165 individual
stars selected to lie on the Red Giant Branch in the cluster Color Magnitude
Diagram was considered. Using radial velocity and metallicity from Calcium
triplet, we were able to select 83 bona-fide cluster members. The addition of
six previously known members leads to a total sample of 89 cluster giants with
typical uncertainties <1.0 km/s in their radial velocity estimates. The sample
covers a wide range of projected distances from the cluster center, from ~0.2
arcmin to 6.5 arcmin = 23 half-light radii (r_h). We find only very weak
rotation, as typical of metal-poor globular clusters. The velocity dispersion
gently declines from a central value of sigma=6.1 km/s to sigma = 2.5 km/s at
~2 arcmin = 7.1= r_h, then it remainins flat out to the next (and last)
measured point of the dispersion profile, at ~4 arcmin = 14.0 r_h, at odds with
the predictions of isotropic King models. We show that both isotropic
single-mass non-collisional models and multi-mass anisotropic models can
reproduce the observed surface brightness and velocity dispersion profiles.Comment: Accepted for publication by MNRAS. Pdflatex, 10 pages, 10 figure
The effect of neural adaptation of population coding accuracy
Most neurons in the primary visual cortex initially respond vigorously when a
preferred stimulus is presented, but adapt as stimulation continues. The
functional consequences of adaptation are unclear. Typically a reduction of
firing rate would reduce single neuron accuracy as less spikes are available
for decoding, but it has been suggested that on the population level,
adaptation increases coding accuracy. This question requires careful analysis
as adaptation not only changes the firing rates of neurons, but also the neural
variability and correlations between neurons, which affect coding accuracy as
well. We calculate the coding accuracy using a computational model that
implements two forms of adaptation: spike frequency adaptation and synaptic
adaptation in the form of short-term synaptic plasticity. We find that the net
effect of adaptation is subtle and heterogeneous. Depending on adaptation
mechanism and test stimulus, adaptation can either increase or decrease coding
accuracy. We discuss the neurophysiological and psychophysical implications of
the findings and relate it to published experimental data.Comment: 35 pages, 8 figure
Momentum dependent ultrafast electron dynamics in antiferromagnetic EuFe2As2
Employing the momentum-sensitivity of time- and angle-resolved photoemission
spectroscopy we demonstrate the analysis of ultrafast single- and many-particle
dynamics in antiferromagnetic EuFe2As2. Their separation is based on a
temperature-dependent difference of photo-excited hole and electron relaxation
times probing the single particle band and the spin density wave gap,
respectively. Reformation of the magnetic order occurs at 800 fs, which is four
times slower compared to electron-phonon equilibration due to a smaller
spin-dependent relaxation phase space
Algorithms for identification and categorization
The main features of a family of efficient algorithms for recognition and
classification of complex patterns are briefly reviewed. They are inspired in
the observation that fast synaptic noise is essential for some of the
processing of information in the brain.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure
Dynamical Synapses Enhance Neural Information Processing: Gracefulness, Accuracy and Mobility
Experimental data have revealed that neuronal connection efficacy exhibits
two forms of short-term plasticity, namely, short-term depression (STD) and
short-term facilitation (STF). They have time constants residing between fast
neural signaling and rapid learning, and may serve as substrates for neural
systems manipulating temporal information on relevant time scales. The present
study investigates the impact of STD and STF on the dynamics of continuous
attractor neural networks (CANNs) and their potential roles in neural
information processing. We find that STD endows the network with slow-decaying
plateau behaviors-the network that is initially being stimulated to an active
state decays to a silent state very slowly on the time scale of STD rather than
on the time scale of neural signaling. This provides a mechanism for neural
systems to hold sensory memory easily and shut off persistent activities
gracefully. With STF, we find that the network can hold a memory trace of
external inputs in the facilitated neuronal interactions, which provides a way
to stabilize the network response to noisy inputs, leading to improved accuracy
in population decoding. Furthermore, we find that STD increases the mobility of
the network states. The increased mobility enhances the tracking performance of
the network in response to time-varying stimuli, leading to anticipative neural
responses. In general, we find that STD and STP tend to have opposite effects
on network dynamics and complementary computational advantages, suggesting that
the brain may employ a strategy of weighting them differentially depending on
the computational purpose.Comment: 40 pages, 17 figure
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