137 research outputs found
An Extreme Solar Event of 20 January 2005: Properties of the Flare and the Origin of Energetic Particles
The extreme solar and SEP event of 20 January 2005 is analyzed from two
perspectives. Firstly, we study features of the main phase of the flare, when
the strongest emissions from microwaves up to 200 MeV gamma-rays were observed.
Secondly, we relate our results to a long-standing controversy on the origin of
SEPs arriving at Earth, i.e., acceleration in flares, or shocks ahead of CMEs.
All emissions from microwaves up to 2.22 MeV line gamma-rays during the main
flare phase originated within a compact structure located just above sunspot
umbrae. A huge radio burst with a frequency maximum at 30 GHz was observed,
indicating the presence of a large number of energetic electrons in strong
magnetic fields. Thus, protons and electrons responsible for flare emissions
during its main phase were accelerated within the magnetic field of the active
region. The leading, impulsive parts of the GLE, and highest-energy gamma-rays
identified with pi^0-decay emission, are similar and correspond in time. The
origin of the pi^0-decay gamma-rays is argued to be the same as that of lower
energy emissions. We estimate the sky-plane speed of the CME to be 2000-2600
km/s, i.e., high, but of the same order as preceding non-GLE-related CMEs from
the same active region. Hence, the flare itself rather than the CME appears to
determine the extreme nature of this event. We conclude that the acceleration,
at least, to sub-relativistic energies, of electrons and protons, responsible
for both the flare emissions and the leading spike of SEP/GLE by 07 UT, are
likely to have occurred simultaneously within the flare region. We do not rule
out a probable contribution from particles accelerated in the CME-driven shock
for the leading GLE spike, which seemed to dominate later on.Comment: 34 pages, 14 Postscript figures. Solar Physics, accepted. A typo
corrected. The original publication is available at
http://www.springerlink.co
Growth of (110) Diamond using pure Dicarbon
We use a density-functional based tight-binding method to study diamond
growth steps by depositing dicarbon species onto a hydrogen-free diamond (110)
surface. Subsequent C_2 molecules are deposited on an initially clean surface,
in the vicinity of a growing adsorbate cluster, and finally, near vacancies
just before completion of a full new monolayer. The preferred growth stages
arise from C_2n clusters in near ideal lattice positions forming zigzag chains
running along the [-110] direction parallel to the surface. The adsorption
energies are consistently exothermic by 8--10 eV per C_2, depending on the size
of the cluster. The deposition barriers for these processes are in the range of
0.0--0.6 eV. For deposition sites above C_2n clusters the adsorption energies
are smaller by 3 eV, but diffusion to more stable positions is feasible. We
also perform simulations of the diffusion of C_2 molecules on the surface in
the vicinity of existing adsorbate clusters using an augmented Lagrangian
penalty method. We find migration barriers in excess of 3 eV on the clean
surface, and 0.6--1.0 eV on top of graphene-like adsorbates. The barrier
heights and pathways indicate that the growth from gaseous dicarbons proceeds
either by direct adsorption onto clean sites or after migration on top of the
existing C_2n chains.Comment: 8 Pages, 7 figure
First-principles study of the effect of charge on the stability of a diamond nanocluster surface
Effects of net charge on the stability of the diamond nanocluster are investigated using the first-principles pseudopotential method with the local density approximation. We find that the charged nanocluster favors the diamond phase over the reconstruction into a fullerene-like structure. Occupying the dangling bond orbitals in the outermost surface, the excess charge can stabilize the bare diamond surface and destabilize the C-H bond on the hydrogenated surface. In combination with recent experimental results, our calculations suggest that negative charging could promote the nucleation and further growth of low-pressure diamond.open8
Molecular phenotyping of multiple mouse strains under metabolic challenge uncovers a role for <i>Elovl2</i> in glucose-induced insulin secretion.
In type 2 diabetes (T2D), pancreatic β cells become progressively dysfunctional, leading to a decline in insulin secretion over time. In this study, we aimed to identify key genes involved in pancreatic beta cell dysfunction by analyzing multiple mouse strains in parallel under metabolic stress.
Male mice from six commonly used non-diabetic mouse strains were fed a high fat or regular chow diet for three months. Pancreatic islets were extracted and phenotypic measurements were recorded at 2 days, 10 days, 30 days, and 90 days to assess diabetes progression. RNA-Seq was performed on islet tissue at each time-point and integrated with the phenotypic data in a network-based analysis.
A module of co-expressed genes was selected for further investigation as it showed the strongest correlation to insulin secretion and oral glucose tolerance phenotypes. One of the predicted network hub genes was <i>Elovl2</i> , encoding Elongase of very long chain fatty acids 2. <i>Elovl2</i> silencing decreased glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in mouse and human β cell lines.
Our results suggest a role for <i>Elovl2</i> in ensuring normal insulin secretory responses to glucose. Moreover, the large comprehensive dataset and integrative network-based approach provides a new resource to dissect the molecular etiology of β cell failure under metabolic stress
Matter Outflows from AGN: A Unifying Model
We discuss a self-consistent unified model of the matter outflows from AGNs
based on a theoretical approach and involving data on AGN evolution and
structure. The model includes a unified geometry, two-phase gas dynamics,
radiation transfer, and absorption spectrum calculations in the UV and X-ray
bands. We briefly discuss several questions about the mass sources of the
flows, the covering factors, and the stability of the narrow absorption
details.Comment: 6 figures, accepted for publication in Astrophysics and Space Scienc
Replication and cross-validation of type 2 diabetes subtypes based on clinical variables: an IMI-RHAPSODY study
Aims/hypothesis Five clusters based on clinical characteristics have been suggested as diabetes subtypes: one autoimmune and four subtypes of type 2 diabetes. In the current study we replicate and cross-validate these type 2 diabetes clusters in three large cohorts using variables readily measured in the clinic.Methods In three independent cohorts, in total 15,940 individuals were clustered based on age, BMI, HbA(1c), random or fasting C-peptide, and HDL-cholesterol. Clusters were cross-validated against the original clusters based on HOMA measures. In addition, between cohorts, clusters were cross-validated by re-assigning people based on each cohort's cluster centres. Finally, we compared the time to insulin requirement for each cluster.Results Five distinct type 2 diabetes clusters were identified and mapped back to the original four All New Diabetics in Scania (ANDIS) clusters. Using C-peptide and HDL-cholesterol instead of HOMA2-B and HOMA2-IR, three of the clusters mapped with high sensitivity (80.6-90.7%) to the previously identified severe insulin-deficient diabetes (SIDD), severe insulin-resistant diabetes (SIRD) and mild obesity-related diabetes (MOD) clusters. The previously described ANDIS mild age-related diabetes (MARD) cluster could be mapped to the two milder groups in our study: one characterised by high HDL-cholesterol (mild diabetes with high HDL-cholesterol [MDH] cluster), and the other not having any extreme characteristic (mild diabetes [MD]). When these two milder groups were combined, they mapped well to the previously labelled MARD cluster (sensitivity 79.1%). In the cross-validation between cohorts, particularly the SIDD and MDH clusters cross-validated well, with sensitivities ranging from 73.3% to 97.1%. SIRD and MD showed a lower sensitivity, ranging from 36.1% to 92.3%, where individuals shifted from SIRD to MD and vice versa. People belonging to the SIDD cluster showed the fastest progression towards insulin requirement, while the MDH cluster showed the slowest progression.Conclusions/interpretation Clusters based on C-peptide instead of HOMA2 measures resemble those based on HOMA2 measures, especially for SIDD, SIRD and MOD. By adding HDL-cholesterol, the MARD cluster based upon HOMA2 measures resulted in the current clustering into two clusters, with one cluster having high HDL levels. Cross-validation between cohorts showed generally a good resemblance between cohorts. Together, our results show that the clustering based on clinical variables readily measured in the clinic (age, HbA(1c), HDL-cholesterol, BMI and C-peptide) results in informative clusters that are representative of the original ANDIS clusters and stable across cohorts. Adding HDL-cholesterol to the clustering resulted in the identification of a cluster with very slow glycaemic deterioration.Molecular Epidemiolog
First Observation of a Upsilon(1D) State
We present the first evidence for the production of Upsilon(1D) states in the
four-photon cascade, Upsilon(3S)-->gamma chib(2P), chib(2P)-->gamma
Upsilon(1D), Upsilon(1D)-->gamma chib(1P), chib(1P)-->gamma Upsilon(1S),
followed by the Upsilon(1S) annihilation into e+e- or mu+mu-. The signal has a
significance of 10.2 standard deviations. The measured product branching ratio
for these five decays, (2.5+-0.5+-0.5)x10^(-5), is consistent with the
theoretical estimates. The data are dominated by the production of one
Upsilon(1D) state consistent with the J=2 assignment. Its mass is determined to
be (10161.1+-0.6+-1.6) MeV, which is consistent with the predictions from
potential models and lattice QCD calculations.
We also searched for Upsilon(3S)-->gammachib(2P),
chib(2P)-->gammaUpsilon(1D), followed by either Upsilon(1D)-->eta Upsilon(1S)
or Upsilon(1D)-->pi+pi- Upsilon(1S). We find no evidence for such decays and
set upper limits on the product branching ratios.Comment: 12 pages postscript,also available through this
http://w4.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLNS/, submitted to PR
Measurement of the charge ratio of atmospheric muons with the CMS detector
This is the pre-print version of this Article. The official published version can be accessed from the link below - Copyright @ 2010 ElsevierWe present a measurement of the ratio of positive to negative muon fluxes from cosmic ray interactions in the atmosphere, using data collected by the CMS detector both at ground level and in the underground experimental cavern at the CERN LHC. Muons were detected in the momentum range from 5 GeV/c to 1 TeV/c. The surface flux ratio is measured to be 1.2766 \pm 0.0032(stat.) \pm 0.0032 (syst.), independent of the muon momentum, below 100 GeV/c. This is the most precise measurement to date. At higher momenta the data are consistent with an increase of the charge ratio, in agreement with cosmic ray shower models and compatible with previous measurements by deep-underground experiments
Observation of a new Xi(b) baryon
The first observation of a new b baryon via its strong decay into Xi(b)^-
pi^+ (plus charge conjugates) is reported. The measurement uses a data sample
of pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC,
corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5.3 inverse femtobarns. The known
Xi(b)^- baryon is reconstructed via the decay chain Xi(b)^- to J/psi Xi^- to
mu^+ mu^- Lambda^0 pi^-, with Lambda^0 to p pi^-. A peak is observed in the
distribution of the difference between the mass of the Xi(b)^- pi^+ system and
the sum of the masses of the Xi(b)^- and pi^+, with a significance exceeding
five standard deviations. The mass difference of the peak is 14.84 +/- 0.74
(stat.) +/- 0.28 (syst.) MeV. The new state most likely corresponds to the
J^P=3/2^+ companion of the Xi(b).Comment: Submitted to Physical Review Letter
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