Examining the structural composition and longitudinal change of team identification.

The propensity of strongly identified fans to contribute positive organizational outcomes for sport teams underpins why team identification maintains a central position in sport management. In the present study we examine the multidimensional structure, stability, and interrelationships between the dimensions of team identification, using longitudinal data (April 2011-April 2012) collected from fans of a new Australian Rules football team (N=602). A Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) of the team identification items included (measured using the Team*ID scale), supported a five-dimensional model structure. This model was subsequently computed as a longitudinal CFA to test the configural and metric invariance of the Team*ID scale. We used a cross-lagged panel model to examine the longitudinal stability of, and interrelationships between,the dimensions: affect, behavioral involvement, cognitive awareness, private evaluation, and public evaluation. Each dimension displayed relative stability over time. In addition, public evaluation and private evaluation in April 2011 displayed a positive relationship with behavioral involvement in April 2012. Similarly, cognitive awareness in April 2011 predicted increases in public evaluation in April 2012 two. We conclude with implications for theory and practice

Some interactions of a vortex with a seamount

The initial value problem for the motion of an equivalent-barotropic vortex which is initially circular and of uniform potential vorticity near a circular seamount of constant height is studied within a quasigeostrophic framework using the method of contour dynamics. Given that the radius of the vortex is equal to the deformation radius, the nature of the interaction depends on four parameters: i) the distance of the vortex from the seamount relative to the deformation radius, ii) the radius of the seamount relative to the deformation radius, iii) the ratio of the non-dimensional height of the seamount relative to the Rossby number of the vortex (or, equivalently, the vortex intensity) and iv) the sense of the vortex circulation. Contour surgery experiments are used to investigate qualitative changes in behaviour of the vortex-seamount system as these parameters are varied. Of particular note is the generation of additional vortex features by the original vortex as it sweeps fluid from the seamount. Moreover, when the original vortex is an anticyclone, dipoles are frequently formed over a wide range of parameter values, which subsequently propagate away from the seamount

New high temperature plasma ion source for the TRISTAN ISOL facility

A vigorous program of ion source development at TRISTAN has led to several types of ion sources that are especially suited to extended operation at a reactor-based ISOL facility. The latest of these is a high temperature plasma ion source in which a 5 gm /sup 235/U target is located in the cathode and can be heated to 2500/sup 0/C. The ion source has a lifetime of >1000 hours and produces a wide array of elements, including Pd. Off-line investigations indicate that the source functions primarily in an electron impact mode of ionization and exhibits typical ionzation efficiencies of >30% for Xe

On the extrapolation to ITER of discharges in present tokamaks

An expression for the extrapolated fusion gain G = Pfusion /5 Pheat (Pfusion being the total fusion power and Pheat the total heating power) of ITER in terms of the confinement improvement factor (H) and the normalised beta (betaN) is derived in this paper. It is shown that an increase in normalised beta can be expected to have a negative or neutral influence on G depending on the chosen confinement scaling law. Figures of merit like H betaN / q95^2 should be used with care, since large values of this quantity do not guarantee high values of G, and might not be attainable with the heating power installed on ITER.Comment: 6 Pages, 3 figures, Submitted to Nuclear Fusion on the 29th of November 200

Cryo-EM structures of the XPF-ERCC1 endonuclease reveal how DNA-junction engagement disrupts an auto-inhibited conformation

The structure-specific endonuclease XPF-ERCC1 participates in multiple DNA damage repair pathways including nucleotide excision repair (NER) and in¬ter-strand crosslink repair (ICLR). How XPF-ERCC1 is catalytically activated by DNA junction substrates is not currently understood. Here we report cryo-electron mi¬croscopy structures of both DNA-free and DNA-bound human XPF-ERCC1. DNA-free XPF-ERCC1 adopts an auto-inhibited conformation in which the XPF heli¬cal domain masks the ERCC1 (HhH)2 domain and restricts access to the XPF catalytic site. DNA junction engagement releases the ERCC1 (HhH)2 domain to couple with the XPF-ERCC1 nuclease/nuclease-like domains. Structure-function data indicate xeroderma pigmentosum patient mutations frequently compromise the structural integrity of XPF-ERCC1. Fanconi anaemia patient mutations often display sub¬stantial in-vitro activity but are resistant to activation by ICLR recruitment factor SLX4. Our data provide insights into XPF-ERCC1 architecture and catalytic activation

Source regions for Antarctic MLT non-migrating semidiurnal tides

Source regions for the westward propagating zonal wavenumber one and three components of the semidiurnal tide observed in the summer mesosphere and lower thermosphere over Antarctica are identified by correlating local tidal variations with global planetary wave one activity in the stratosphere and lower mesosphere. The advantages of using zonal wavenumber resolved tidal amplitudes for such a study are described. The results support the prediction of a source region in the northern hemisphere

Methodological framework for World Health Organization estimates of the global burden of foodborne disease

Background: The Foodborne Disease Burden Epidemiology Reference Group (FERG) was established in 2007 by the World Health Organization to estimate the global burden of foodborne diseases (FBDs). This paper describes the methodological framework developed by FERG's Computational Task Force to transform epidemiological information into FBD burden estimates. Methods and Findings: The global and regional burden of 31 FBDs was quantified, along with limited estimates for 5 other FBDs, using Disability-Adjusted Life Years in a hazard- and incidence-based approach. To accomplish this task, the following workflow was defined: outline of disease models and collection of epidemiological data; design and completion of a database template; development of an imputation model; identification of disability weights; probabilistic burden assessment; and estimating the proportion of the disease burden by each hazard that is attributable to exposure by food (i.e., source attribution). All computations were performed in R and the different functions were compiled in the R package 'FERG'. Traceability and transparency were ensured by sharing results and methods in an interactive way with all FERG members throughout the process. Conclusions: We developed a comprehensive framework for estimating the global burden of FBDs, in which methodological simplicity and transparency were key elements. All the tools developed have been made available and can be translated into a user-friendly national toolkit for studying and monitoring food safety at the local level

A two-site flexible clamp mechanism for RET-GDNF-GFRα1 assembly reveals both conformational adaptation and strict geometric spacing

RET receptor tyrosine kinase plays vital developmental and neuroprotective roles in metazoans. GDNF family ligands (GFLs) when bound to cognate GFRα co-receptors recognize and activate RET stimulating its cytoplasmic kinase function. The principles for RET ligand-co-receptor recognition are incompletely understood. Here, we report a crystal structure of the cadherin-like module (CLD1-4) from zebrafish RET revealing interdomain flexibility between CLD2 and CLD3. Comparison with a cryo-electron microscopy structure of a ligand-engaged zebrafish RETECD-GDNF-GFRα1a complex indicates conformational changes within a clade-specific CLD3 loop adjacent to the co-receptor. Our observations indicate that RET is a molecular clamp with a flexible calcium-dependent arm that adapts to different GFRα co-receptors, while its rigid arm recognizes a GFL dimer to align both membrane-proximal cysteine-rich domains. We also visualize linear arrays of RETECD-GDNF-GFRα1a suggesting that a conserved contact stabilizes higher-order species. Our study reveals that ligand-co-receptor recognition by RET involves both receptor plasticity and strict spacing of receptor dimers by GFL ligands

A measurement of the tau mass and the first CPT test with tau leptons

We measure the mass of the tau lepton to be 1775.1+-1.6(stat)+-1.0(syst.) MeV using tau pairs from Z0 decays. To test CPT invariance we compare the masses of the positively and negatively charged tau leptons. The relative mass difference is found to be smaller than 3.0 10^-3 at the 90% confidence level.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, Submitted to Phys. Letts.

First Measurement of Z/gamma* Production in Compton Scattering of Quasi-real Photons

We report the first observation of Z/gamma* production in Compton scattering of quasi-real photons. This is a subprocess of the reaction e+e- to e+e-Z/gamma*, where one of the final state electrons is undetected. Approximately 55 pb-1 of data collected in the year 1997 at an e+e- centre-of-mass energy of 183 GeV with the OPAL detector at LEP have been analysed. The Z/gamma* from Compton scattering has been detected in the hadronic decay channel. Within well defined kinematic bounds, we measure the product of cross-section and Z/gamma* branching ratio to hadrons to be (0.9+-0.3+-0.1) pb for events with a hadronic mass larger than 60 GeV, dominated by (e)eZ production. In the hadronic mass region between 5 GeV and 60 GeV, dominated by (e)egamma* production, this product is found to be (4.1+-1.6+-0.6) pb. Our results agree with the predictions of two Monte Carlo event generators, grc4f and PYTHIA.Comment: 18 pages, LaTeX, 5 eps figures included, submitted to Physics Letters