The second US Naval Observatory CCD Astrograph Catalog (UCAC2)

The second USNO CCD Astrograph Catalog, UCAC2 was released in July 2003. Positions and proper motions for 48,330,571 sources (mostly stars) are available on 3 CDs, supplemented with 2MASS photometry for 99.5% of the sources. The catalog covers the sky area from -90 to +40 degrees declination, going up to +52 in some areas; this completely supersedes the UCAC1 released in 2001. Current epoch positions are obtained from observations with the USNO 8-inch Twin Astrograph equipped with a 4k CCD camera. The precision of the positions are 15 to 70 mas, depending on magnitude, with estimated systematic errors of 10 mas or below. Proper motions are derived by utilizing over 140 ground-and space-based catalogs, including Hipparcos/Tycho, the AC2000.2, as well as yet unpublished re-measures of the AGK2 plates and scans from the NPM and SPM plates. Proper motion errors are about 1 to 3 mas/yr for stars to 12th magnitude, and about 4 to 7 mas/yr for fainter stars to 16th magnitude. The observational data, astrometric reductions, results, and important information for the users of this catalog are presented.Comment: accepted by AJ, AAS LaTeX, 14 figures, 10 table

Evidence for Adiabatic Magnetization of cold Dy_N Clusters

Magnetic properties of Dy_N clusters in a molecular beam generated with a liquid helium cooled nozzle are investigated by Stern-Gerlach experiments. The cluster magnetizations \mu_z are measured as a function of magnetic field (B = 0 - 1.6T) and cluster size (16 < N < 56). The most important observation is the saturation of the magnetization \mu_z(B) at large field strengths. The magnetization approaches saturation following the power law |\mu_z-\mu_0| proportional to 1/\sqrt{B}, where \mu_0 denotes the magnetic moment. This gives evidence for adiabatic magnetization.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Inherent noise can facilitate coherence in collective swarm motion

Among the most striking aspects of the movement of many animal groups are their sudden coherent changes in direction. Recent observations of locusts and starlings have shown that this directional switching is an intrinsic property of their motion. Similar direction switches are seen in self-propelled particle and other models of group motion. Comprehending the factors that determine such switches is key to understanding the movement of these groups. Here, we adopt a coarse-grained approach to the study of directional switching in a self-propelled particle model assuming an underlying one-dimensional Fokker–Planck equation for the mean velocity of the particles. We continue with this assumption in analyzing experimental data on locusts and use a similar systematic Fokker–Planck equation coefficient estimation approach to extract the relevant information for the assumed Fokker–Planck equation underlying that experimental data. In the experiment itself the motion of groups of 5 to 100 locust nymphs was investigated in a homogeneous laboratory environment, helping us to establish the intrinsic dynamics of locust marching bands. We determine the mean time between direction switches as a function of group density for the experimental data and the self-propelled particle model. This systematic approach allows us to identify key differences between the experimental data and the model, revealing that individual locusts appear to increase the randomness of their movements in response to a loss of alignment by the group. We give a quantitative description of how locusts use noise to maintain swarm alignment. We discuss further how properties of individual animal behavior, inferred by using the Fokker–Planck equation coefficient estimation approach, can be implemented in the self-propelled particle model to replicate qualitatively the group level dynamics seen in the experimental data

Noncollinear magnetic ordering in small Chromium Clusters

We investigate noncollinear effects in antiferromagnetically coupled clusters using the general, rotationally invariant form of local spin-density theory. The coupling to the electronic degrees of freedom is treated with relativistic non-local pseudopotentials and the ionic structure is optimized by Monte-Carlo techniques. We find that small chromium clusters (N \le 13) strongly favor noncollinear configurations of their local magnetic moments due to frustration. This effect is associated with a significantly lower total magnetization of the noncollinear ground states, ameliorating the disagreement between Stern-Gerlach measurements and previous collinear calculations for Cr_{12} and Cr_{13}. Our results further suggest that the trend to noncollinear configurations might be a feature common to most antiferromagnetic clusters.Comment: 9 pages, RevTeX plus .eps/.ps figure

Stochastic Resonance in a Dipole

We show that the dipole, a system usually proposed to model relaxation phenomena, exhibits a maximum in the signal-to-noise ratio at a non-zero noise level, thus indicating the appearance of stochastic resonance. The phenomenon occurs in two different situations, i.e. when the minimum of the potential of the dipole remains fixed in time and when it switches periodically between two equilibrium points. We have also found that the signal-to-noise ratio has a maximum for a certain value of the amplitude of the oscillating field.Comment: 4 pages, RevTex, 6 PostScript figures available upon request; to appear in Phys. Rev.

Quotients for sheets of conjugacy classes

We provide a description of the orbit space of a sheet S for the conjugation action of a complex simple simply connected algebraic group G. This is obtained by means of a bijection between S/G and the quotient of a shifted torus modulo the action of a subgroup of the Weyl group and it is the group analogue of a result due to Borho and Kraft. We also describe the normalisation of the categorical quotient \overline{S}//G for arbitrary simple G and give a necessary and sufficient condition for S//G to be normal in analogy to results of Borho, Kraft and Richardson. The example of G_2 is worked out in detail

Quotients for sheets of conjugacy classes

We provide a description of the orbit space of a sheet S for the conjugation action of a complex simple simply connected algebraic group G. This is obtained by means of a bijection between S 15G and the quotient of a shifted torus modulo the action of a subgroup of the Weyl group and it is the group analogue of a result due to Borho and Kraft. We also describe the normalisation of the categorical quotient // for arbitrary simple G and give a necessary and sufficient condition for //G to be normal in analogy to results of Borho, Kraft and Richardson. The example of G2 is worked out in detail

Occurrence of Legionella in groundwater: an ecological study

Abstract The natural habitat of Legionella is the water environment. Little is known about their presence in groundwaters in spite of the fact that many millions around the globe regularly rely on groundwaters. This pilot study was aimed at evaluating the occurrence of Legionella in groundwater samples (water and biofilms) collected from various sites. Water and biofilm samples from selected groundwater sources were examined for Legionella using culture media (selective and non-selective) and a semi-nested PCR assay. Innovative approaches such as immunomagnetic separation (IMS) in combination with cultivation and flow cytometry were also evaluated. The findings available thus far show that (a) Legionella could be readily recovered from groundwater samples by cultivation even though their numbers showed considerable variations, (b) surprisingly, the PCR methodology was not yet as sensitive as cultivation and (c) flow cytometry was not directly applicable on natural samples because of debris and the high number of heterotrophic associated microflora from which some members were likely to cross-react with the monoclonal antibody used for separation procedures (IMS)